


Love Knows No Time

by WhimsyNeptune



Series: Love Knows No Time [1]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Anti-Hook, Anti-Neal, F/F, If Not Completely, Mostly Regina's Point Of View, Mother Superior Is Pro-SwanQueen, Slow Burn-ish, a bit angsty, anti-CaptainSwan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-27
Updated: 2017-11-27
Packaged: 2019-01-05 22:49:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 70,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12198960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhimsyNeptune/pseuds/WhimsyNeptune
Summary: Regina was beyond confused. Time reversal was supposed to be impossible, except for the time Zelena did it. "What are you talking about? Time traveling is practically impossible if you ignore my sister's case."Mother Superior rolled her eyes and raised her hand. "It will all make more sense when you wake up."Or,The one where Regina wishes things had gone differently between her and Emma, and her wish is granted.





	1. Chapter 1

Regina stood at Henry's side as she watched the love of her life walk down the aisle to someone that wasn't her. She did her best to fake a smile, but she soon realized that there wasn't much need to do so. No one was paying attention to her. They were paying attention to the beautiful bride and the one-handed pirate that deserved to be locked away and forgotten… Not to marry the most amazing woman in all the realms.

She had cried many tears throughout the past few months, because ever since Regina realized that she had truly lost the Savior to Captain Guyliner her life spiraled out of control. She had started drinking herself to sleep every night and had to hide her anguish and heartache every day she left her house.

Henry seemed to catch on to something being wrong but certainly didn't put two and two together. He seemed to associate her pain to being reminded of Robin and had apparently asked Emma to re-think asking Regina to be her matron of honor.

She fought back the tears as she watched the unlikely couple say their vows, and wished with everything she had that things had been different between her and Emma. She wished above everything else that she had been nicer, and more open with her, and that somehow, some way, she had been able to confess her feelings to the blonde before Hook swept in and stole the blonde woman's heart.

Henry watched as his birth mother exchanged vows with a smile on his face, and the former queen wondered for a brief moment if he would have been this happy had it been both of his mothers up there and not just Emma. She sighed as she felt her heart shatter once more in her chest, and prepared herself to hear the most heart-wrenching, gut-twisting, words to come out of Emma's mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut to prevent the tears from falling, and held her breath, but all she was met with was silence.

Confused, she slowly opened her eyes and saw that everything around her was frozen. Zelena's body was frozen in place, and so were everyone else. Regina was mind boggled, and twisted around to see that the Charmings were unmoving, and so was Henry, and the dwarves and every other inhabitant of Storybrooke, except… _Mother Superior_

"What is this? What have you done to them!?" Regina asked worriedly.

Blue rolled her eyes. "Isn't it obvious? I grant wishes to those who deserve them, so here I am."

"Whose wish are you granting by ruining Emma's happy ending? Gold's? Because it's sure as hell, not mine. All I want, more than anything else it this world is for Emma to get her happy ending."

The fairy shook her head. "No, you fool. I'm granting you _your_ wish. I'm not ruining anyone's happy ending, just reversing time to see if history repeats itself or not."

Regina was beyond confused. Time reversal was supposed to be impossible, except for the time Zelena did it. "What are you talking about? Time traveling is practically impossible if you ignore my sister's case."

Mother Superior rolled her eyes and raised her hand. "It will all make more sense when you wake up."

Regina tried to ask the fairy what she meant by that, but before she could utter a single sound, the world went black.

**XXX**

The next thing Regina knew she was in her bedroom. She sat up and noticed that she had a substantial migraine before all the retentions from her encounter with the matriarch of the fairy convent came rushing back to her. She swiftly dismissed it all as a terrible nightmare after a terrible day that had led to a drinking binge the following night.

She continued to sit in her bed a moment longer as she let the heartache sink in. Emma, the sheriff, Regina's True Love (who also happened to have Hook and Neal as true loves as well) had married someone else. Had married one of her other true loves without ever knowing that Regina was another one of them.

The brunette sighed and refused to let herself cry. _Love is weakness, Regina._ She heard her mother chide in her head. She stood up and tried her hardest to hide her emotional turmoil so that Henry wouldn't worry.

As she reached the hallway, she walked passed Henry's room and noticed that the door was closed; meaning he either was getting changed or had already left for school. She shrugged it off; Henry was a sixteen-year-old, he could manage for himself.

She finally entered the kitchen and immediately froze. There was a man in her house, and he looked familiar. But it couldn't be… Could it? She had killed him over six years ago… She had literally crushed his heart in her hand, and had reaped the consequences at the hands of… _Emma._ Had the dream been reality? No. She was most likely still drunk from her apparent alcohol bender from the previous night.

She squeezed her eyes shut forcefully, trying her hardest to clear away the remainder of her hangover, and reopened her eyes, only to see the man turn around and face her with a curious smile. "Regina? Are you okay?"

The mayor gulped nervously. There was absolutely no way she could be imagining that smooth Irish accent. He was there, in her house, but how? This made no sense whatsoever. Had she actually talked to the Blue Fairy the night before? Had the fairy resurrected the former Sheriff thinking that it would in some way make up for Regina losing Emma to Hook? Because, if she had, the fairy would be sorely disappointed when Regina told the man to leave her alone. She felt terrible for the way she had treated him in the past, but she was in no way interested in the former sheriff… She was head over heels in love with the current blonde sheriff that fancied leather jackets and bear claws.

She realized that she hadn't responded to the male intruder and finally found her voice. "I- Graham? How are you here?" She asked perplexedly.

The man creased his eyebrows, seemingly confused. "I have a key, Regina." He said as though the answer was evident. "The same way I've been getting in for years."

Regina was about to have a heart attack. Graham was speaking as if he hadn't been murdered six years ago at the hands of the woman before him. She was confused and terrified all at once. None of this was making any sense to her, until finally, she came to the conclusion that she and Mother Superior, had in fact, conversed at Emma and Hook's wedding, and that for some unknown reason Graham had no recollection of being murdered or mind controlled by Regina. She took a deep breath, preparing herself for the conversation that she was about to have with the Irish man. "Graham, what is today's date?" She asked calmly.

The man chuckled and shook his head, "The twenty-eighth of course." He said.

Regina furrowed her brow. _Why does that date sound so familiar?_ "The twenty-eighth of what?" She asked.

"Of October?" He said questioningly. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Regina soon realized that Mother Superior hadn't raised Graham from the dead, she had reversed time back to the very day Emma Swan had entered the little town of Storybrooke and flipped everyone's life upside down.

She smiled brightly. The fairy had given her a second chance to be with Emma, and she sure as hell wasn't going to waste it. "What time is it, Graham?" She asked excitedly.

"It is 8 in the morning." He informed her.

Regina nodded with a broad smile. "Perfect."

She had ten hours to decide on how she was going to go about things this time because she had to get it right. There was no room for errors. If she ruined this second chance with Emma, she would have to watch her fall in love with Captain Guyliner once again and marry the imbecile.

She then froze as a realization hit her, it might not even be Guyliner that she fell for this time. If Graham was back, that meant Neal was back too. Which meant not only did she have to win Emma before Hook did, but also before Neal, and if Regina remembered correctly, that was only about eight months away. She had to work diligently, quickly, and efficiently if she wanted to have even a sliver of a chance with Emma.

It wouldn't be hard though, at least she hoped it wouldn't be; because this time she knew Emma, and knew that she only had Henry's best interest at heart. She would just have to figure a way to navigate through all of the trials she knew were ahead, and then find the opportunity to spend as much time with Emma as possible.

This would be easy; she knew Emma cared about her, she just had to get the blonde to fall in love with her. She took a deep breath and ran back up the stairs to change into her tight fitted gray dress.

Soon she would be seeing Emma Swan, the _real_ Emma Swan; not the hollow shell of a woman that Killian beat her down to; and she was going to sweep her off of her feet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I was very nervous to post this, but I really love the plot of this story and wanted to see if anyone else did as well, I would love to continue, but I would really like to know what you all think as well. Should I continue? Please let me know!**


	2. Chapter 2

Regina was sat at her office desk trying to focus on paperwork that she remembered doing six years ago but was failing miserably. All she could think about was the endless possibilities that she now had with Emma. The mayor knew how rare and precious this second chance was, and refused to ruin her last chance with the blonde sheriff. She wanted more than anything to make sure that she didn't lose her for good.

When the clock hit 5:30 she immediately grabbed her coat and headed for her car. She got into the old Mercedes and drove towards her home.

As soon as she got to her house on Mifflin Street, she shut off the engine of her R107 Benz and took a deep breath to steady her heart. She had a half hour until Showtime, and she wasn't entirely convinced that she could do this. She had to figure out a way to get Graham out of the picture because, unfortunately, the last time this played out, he and Emma had a fling before Regina crushed his heart.

Regina sighed and took a deep breath, preparing herself for the most important meeting of her life.

The mayor got out of the car and walked into her mansion. She closed the door behind her and caught sight of Graham in her kitchen making himself what appeared to be tea. She needed to get rid of him before Emma arrived or his presence could ruin Emma's first impression of her. Regina hastily went to her study to collect his heart from the chest in the bottom drawer of her desk and hoped to any deity that was out there that her plan would succeed. Once she recovered the heart, she put the chest back into her drawer and locked it before walking down the stairs with the intent to return the heart to its rightful place

Regina reached the bottom of the stairs and looked to the man; she felt a pang of guilt catapult through her chest. Why had she ever thought that it was acceptable to treat the gentleman as a slave? He seemed like a decent enough man and most certainly didn't deserve to be turned into a mindless servant. She had split herself from her evil half over a year ago, and she could see clearly once more. She had a conscience now, and her heart refused to keep the male Sheriff's heart, yet she couldn't kill him. Her heart refused to do the red-headed man any harm, so although she needed the man gone, there was no way she could ever hurt him or control him as she had once done.

So, instead of giving into the darkness, she hurriedly used a small amount of her dwindling amount of magic to put Graham to sleep before plunging his heart back into his chest and wiping the memory of his relationship with Regina from his, and everyone else's memory. No one would remember the Sheriff and the Mayor had anything but a professional affiliation with each other. She then magically transported the man back to the sheriff's office and hoped that for now, Graham Humbert wouldn't be too much of a problem.

Once the man was out of her house, the former queen began to clean the mess that he had made in her kitchen. She couldn't have Emma thinking that she kept her house a mess. She didn't want the blonde believing that she let their son live in a pig sty.

Just as she finished drying the counter tops, she heard the familiar voices outside and smiled widely, before she turned on her 'Worried Mother' façade and burst out of her front door to see the two most important people in her life. Although it was a shock to see her son as a ten-year-old again instead of the sixteen-year-old young man that he had turned into, she still managed to hold up to the part.

"Henry!" she called faux-worriedly as she ran to her little boy and wrapped him in her arms. "Oh, Henry! Are you okay?" She released him. "Where have you been!?" She finally managed to look to her true love before finally asking "What happened?" She braced herself for the pain that would follow the words she remembered Henry saying this fateful day.

"I found my real mom!" The little boy yelled as he ran to his room.

She fought back the pain that hearing those words caused. Although she had mentally prepared herself for them all day, she didn't have to pretend to be devastated by those words, because even though she knew that in the future Henry wouldn't believe what he had just said, it still stung that he currently meant them. She brushed off the pain and turned back to the nervous blonde on her front lawn. "You're Henry's birth mother?" She asked as she pretended to be oblivious to the red leather clad woman's identity.

Emma smiled uneasily. " _Hi_." She murmured.

Regina fought back her own genuine smile at the adorableness of the woman before her. "I need to check on him, but how would you like a glass of the best apple cider you ever tasted?"

"Got anything stronger?" Emma asked with suddenly a bit more confidence.

Regina smirked at the woman before gesturing for her to come inside. She led Emma to the study before she spoke again. "I need to make sure he is alright, but as soon as I ground him, I will be back down."

Emma nodded awkwardly as she looked anywhere but at the adoptive mother of her son.

Regina smiled, and turned to leave, but soon remembered that Emma was a flight risk right now; when things got scary or too uncomfortable, Emma would run. So, to save herself the mishap of having Emma vanish by the time she got back downstairs she decided to give Henry space, that is, after all, what he wanted. "On second thought, I think I will give him some time to cool down." She said casually.

Emma's face flushed signaling that she had indeed planned to run as soon as Regina went upstairs. "Okay. If that's what you think is best for him. He is _your_ kid after all." She replied, emphasizing that she was in no way a threat. It warmed Regina's heart, but that was not at all what she wanted.

She wanted Emma to be comfortable around her, but she had to go about this differently. Casually, but differently.

"How did he find me?" The blonde asked.

Regina smiled at the memory of the first time Emma had asked her that. "No idea. I adopted him when he was three weeks old. His records were sealed. I was told the birth mother didn't want any contact." She said the same spiel as the first time they had this conversation, but she said it in a friendlier manner; less guarded, less threatening.

Emma smiled as she looked out into space. "You were told right." She said just as she had before, but to Regina's sheer delight, the blonde added more to it. "I was only eighteen when I gave birth to him. I wasn't able to give him the life that he deserved, so I had no choice but to give him up. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do, but I don't regret it. It seems to me like you've given him more than I could ever have even dreamed of giving him."

Regina knew that wasn't the whole story. She knew the whole story, but she was thrilled that Emma had trusted her enough to give her more than just 'You were told right' like she had the first time around. The rehabilitated queen nodded, pretending to be very intrigued by the story and sat down next to Emma on the couch. "I can only imagine what it must've been like to go through that at such a young age." She said honestly, because, really she could never imagine going through that again. Especially so young. When she had to give up Henry (and Emma) at the town line to save them from the curse, she almost died. She couldn't imagine going through that all alone in a prison hospital at the young age of 18.

Emma shrugged. "I've been through a lot. I didn't want the kid to have to go through anything that I did. It was for the best."

The brunette nodded. "I'm sure it was for the best, but I still can't even imagine that type of pain." She said before going deeper into the subject, to show that she was genuinely interested in Emma's story. "I hope that the father was there for support at least."

Emma chuckled humorlessly but didn't respond.

"What?"

"There _was_ a father."

Regina hid her smirk behind her glass of apple cider. She always loved hearing about Neal in the _past_ tense. "Should I be worried about him?"

Emma straightened her shoulders and pursed her lips before shaking her head. "Nope, he doesn't even know."

Regina raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Emma cleared her throat. "Okay, um. Let's cut to the chase. The kid is your son. I gave birth to him, but you raised him, so he's yours, and I'm just here to make sure he got home safely, which he did; so I'll just leave you be."

Regina shook her head. "You don't have to rush off. I think it would be good for Henry to get to know you. As long as you don't plan on stealing him away." She said, pretending to believe that Emma would ever be willing to tear Henry away from her.

Emma puckered her lips and raised her eyebrows. "I'm not so sure that's such a great idea." She said. "I live all the way in Boston, and I have a pretty demanding job. I don't want the kid to get his hopes up because there really isn't much to me, and he'll just be disappointed."

Regina frowned. She most certainly had expected Emma to refuse at first, but not at all for the reasons she had named. She hated that Emma felt this way about herself; it tore at her heart and made her want to adamantly express how amazing Emma truly was. But this Emma only knew Regina as Henry's adoptive mother, so there was no way that the brunette could do so without seeming strange.

So, Regina set into motion the second part of her plan. "Oh, I don't believe he could be disappointed in the woman that gave him life. How about you stay the night at the bed and breakfast uptown, and we meet for coffee in the morning? You do drink coffee, don't you?"

Of course, Regina knew that Emma preferred Hot Cocoa, preferably with whipped cream and cinnamon. She knew this, but she pretended not to because she had a plan.

Emma nodded. "I do, but I usually take Hot Chocolate instead." She answered honestly.

Regina smirked internally before she used her knowledge to attach the blonde to her son. Oh, really? Henry absolutely loves Hot Cocoa! He even adds cinnamon to it for some reason."

When she saw Emma's face light up at the little fun fact, Regina had just spewed, the older woman internally screamed _**GOTCHA!**_

"Really?" The blonde asked in what appeared to be curiosity.

Regina nodded with what she hoped was a perplexed expression. "Yes, and I don't understand it. I would have never thought up such a bizarre concoction on my own."

Emma chuckled. "Not many would. I. however, have been drinking that brew for years. It's actually my go-to."

Regina smiled. She was thrilled that Emma was already opening up to her much more than she had the first time. It was all about appearing to be approachable, and Regina could tell that she was doing a much better job at being amicable than she had previously been. "Is that so, Miss Swan?" The blonde nodded, and the brunette spoke again. "See?" She asked with a smile. "That just shows you that I'm going to need your help! I have nothing in common with him." _Besides the fact that we both love you._

Emma looked uncertain, but after a moment of noticeable hesitancy, she conceded with a nod. "Alright, I guess one hot cocoa date wouldn't hurt."

Regina's heart did a cartwheel at the word date. "D-date?"

Emma's eyes widened as a look of horror stretched across her face. "Oh! No, not a date, but y'know…. A, uh-… A meeting? Yeah, a meeting."

Regina forced herself not to frown. _It's going to take time, Regina. You knew this… She has a lot of hurt harbored under her mask of aloofness._ "Right. Well then, I will see you at, say, eight o'clock tomorrow morning, yes?"

Emma nodded. "Yeah, sure. I guess that'll work."

Regina nodded and outstretched her hand. "I'm looking forward to it, Miss Swan."

Emma accepted her hand and shook it firmly. "I will see you then, Madame Mayor." She said before turning around and walking towards her yellow Slug Bug."

Regina watched the woman she so desperately loved walk away. She hated to admit it, but hearing Emma call her 'Madame Mayor' again had aroused her in a way she really should be ashamed of.

She wasn't though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope this was decent... It took me forever to get this to where I thought it was mildly presentable, and I am still a bit insecure about it. Please let me know what you think


	3. Chapter 3

Regina had talked to Henry that night and had reprimanded him for running away, but she had also told him that she would try to be a better mother than she had been. She also said that she was going to allow Emma to somehow stay in his life, and that had earned her a hug.

She was beyond grateful that she knew what he wanted this time around, and even more thankful that she was able to give him everything that he wanted. Now she just hoped that she could give Emma everything that _she_ wanted.

Regina was currently at the restaurant awaiting Emma's arrival. It was 7:55 a.m, and she was becoming excessively anxious about the upcoming conversation. The mayor desperately longed to get Emma to denounce her position as a bonds-woman and take up reign as a Sheriff's Deputy. Hell, if she really wanted it Regina would demote Graham and give Emma the post of Sheriff, she did a better job than him anyway.

She took a deep, steadying breath as she stared at the door and waited for the blonde savior to walk through the door. Five minutes later she saw a flash of blonde hair and in walked Emma Swan. Regina felt butterflies begin to rave inside of her belly, and she beamed a bright smile towards the blonde woman that owned her heart. _She's actually on time._ She noted silently.

Emma looked around the room before meeting Regina's eyes and sauntering towards the brunette's booth. When she reached Regina, she stopped and stood there awkwardly. "Morning, Madame Mayor." She said without making eye contact with the brunette.

Regina smiled fondly at the familiarity of this Emma and gestured to the seat across from her. "Good morning, Miss Swan; have a seat!" She said kindly.

Emma did as Regina had requested and sat there looking utterly uncomfortable. "So…" She said, dragging out the word much longer than necessary.

"Do, be quiet, Dear. It is entirely unnecessary to elongate a word with only two letters in it." She said with a friendly smile. Her voice held the same biting tone, but her face showed that her intentions were not in any way malicious. (At least she hoped)

Emma remained silent for a few moments, causing Regina's nerves to spike. Maybe she hadn't been clear enough that her words were out of friendly banter and not bitterness and chastisement.

Her worries were soon assuaged as Emma threw her head back and chuckled. When her head returned to its proper position, the blonde smiled and spoke. "You know, last night I was worried as hell about this meeting, but you're funny. I like you."

Happiness flowed through Regina's chest and crashed into her heart like a tsunami at Emma's words. "I like you too." She croaked out.

Emma smiled for a moment but then suddenly appeared to feel awkward as she cleared her throat and looked away. "So, um… Does this place have anything good to eat?" She inquired.

"Of course! I recommend the breakfast burrito."

Emma smiled at her before she gestured for Ruby to come to their table. That's when reality hit. The entire town ( _most_ ) feared her and would hate her after Emma broke the curse. How in the hell was she supposed to win Emma's heart if the whole village hated her after the curse broke? She sighed and shook her head as Ruby walked up to the table.

The brunette waitress strutted over to Emma and Regina's table with a predatory grin on directed towards the blonde woman; which caused Regina's nerves to strain. The former queen quickly reminded herself of the fact that Red Riding hood was still madly in love with Dorothy Gale and that even if she were currently attracted to the savior, once the curse was broken she would forget all about Emma.

"Hello there, cutie!" The waitress greeted the blonde. "My name is Ruby, and I will be taking care of you this morning."

"Wow. Straightforward I see." Emma said with a chuckle.

Regina was agitated, to say the least. She had asked Emma there so that she could convince the woman to stay in town, not, so she could watch Emma and Ruby flirt with each other.

"Just ignore Miss Lucas. She really doesn't know when it is appropriate to speak." Regina said as she sent a glare to the werewolf.

Ruby glared back and rolled her eyes. "No, it's just that the mayor here never wants to hear anyone speak unless it is herself." She said.

Emma chuckled at Ruby's comeback before ordering a Hot Chocolate with cinnamon. When it was Regina's turn to order, she just ordered a simple coffee with two sugars and no cream. Ruby took the requests with her and left the two women alone. "Ruby doesn't seem to care for you in the least," Emma said with a chortle.

Regina scoffed and rolled her eyes, "It's only going to get worse now that you're here." She said.

Emma corrugated her brows, "Why's that? I'm only staying for a few days at the most."

Regina frowned s her heart cracked a bit inside of her chest. "Please stay. I really do think that it would be in the best interest of Henry for him to get to have you in his life."

"You didn't answer my question." Emma deadpanned as she accepted the hot cocoa Ruby had just offered her.

Regina grabbed her coffee that the she-wolf had placed in front of her and stared down at it before sighing. "I haven't been the nicest mayor out there. I've probably abused my power here and there, although most people don't question my authority, the owners of this fine establishment don't take too kindly to me. Now that you're here, rumors are going to start spreading" Regina admitted.

Emma nodded with a hum as she sipped on her chocolaty drink. When she finished her sip, she spoke. "Is that why Henry thinks that you're the Evil Queen? Because everyone talks about you?"

Regina smiled sadly and shook her head. "No. That's most certainly not the main reason. It doesn't help though."

"Well, you seem to be anything but malevolent to me. I think it's probably just a phase. That therapist that we ran into last night appears to be good at what he does; he seems to have a significant impact on the way Henry thinks. I'm sure that the kid will just grow out of it though. All children believe in fairy tales at one point or another."

Regina smiled tightly and nodded. She wasn't quite sure when she should tell Emma about the truth, but the Regal woman knew for a fact that doing so in public would be the worst decision she could possibly make, so instead, she decided to remain silent.

Regina let the silence prolong itself for a few more moments before speaking up again. "The reason I called you here was to get to know each other better, and I think that so far, I've been the only one to open up today."

Emma raised her eyebrows for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. "What do you want to know?"

"Where do you live?" She asked, feigning obliviousness.

"I have a place in Boston. That's where Henry found me." Emma said casually.

Regina nodded. "That's lovely. DO you have a view of the harbor?"  
Emma scoffed humorously. "More like a view of the building next door." She said.

Regina frowned but nodded. "What do you do for a living?" She asked, once again pretending to be clueless to the woman's story.

"I do some bounty hunting, More accurately called a Bail Bondswoman."

Regina smirked. "We could use more law enforcement around here if you'd be interested. There are also tons of places to live here. I promise to pay you a substantial amount more than your gig as a bonds-person, and if you accept you'd get to be closer to Henry."

Emma seemed taken aback, but then appeared to make an assessment about something. "You have an ulterior motive." She said.

I was Regina's turn to be caught off guard. "I- What?" She stuttered, not entirely sure what to say.

"There is a particular reason you want me to stay in town, and it isn't just for Henry's benefit. Many adoptive parents would much rather their kid's birth mother to fall off the face of the Earth, and I can tell without a doubt that you would normally be that type of parent if there weren't extenuating circumstances. Which I can also tell that there is. I'm just not sure what those are at the moment."

Regina sighed and nodded. "Alright. Fine. Yes, there is some truth to that." Regina didn't want to seem too forward and get laughed off like Ruby had, so she decided that gaining Emma's friendship would be the first and most crucial step in winning her heart. She wouldn't admit to her feelings for at least a month. Then the brunette would ask Emma to start a relationship with her. Once Regina felt semi-secure in their relationship, she would come clean about being the Evil Queen. At least, that was what her plan would be; if Emma would quit being so damn stubborn and just accept the offer of a Deputy job.

"I know," The savior said with a cocky smile. "I just want to know how much."

Regina ground her teeth as she felt her arousal pool between her legs at the blonde's cocky attitude. Oh, how she missed the real Emma. "I want you to stay here for Henry, that part isn't a lie."

Emma nodded. "I never said that it was. Just that there was more to it than that."

Regina couldn't believe the amount of confidence in the woman before her. She hadn't realized just how much being with Captain Hook had changed the woman. She had always known that the difference was devastatingly drastic, but the woman sat before her wasn't even close to the same woman that had walked down the aisle to the one-handed scumbag. Emma Swan was a wonderful, charismatic, confident, sexy and independent bad-ass with massive trust issues, but still caring beyond belief. Emma Swan 2.0 was a sad, hollow shell of the woman she had once been. She cared deeply but remained entirely obedient to the will of her parents and the man who had made jokes about raping her before he 'stole her heart'.

Regina scoffed at the phrase. Hook had stolen something alright, but it wasn't Emma's heart. It was Emma's fire, passion, ambition, confidence, independence, and personality altogether. Regina hated that man with a burning passion and would never understand why Emma had chosen to marry him of all people. He was uncouth, grotesque, unhygienic, imbecilic, illiterate, juvenile, narcissistic, and so many other unsympathetic things that it made her blood boil just remembering that he had ever gotten a chance to touch the most precious thing in all the realms… The heart of Emma Swan.

She realized she hadn't responded to Emma's statement and shook herself out of her reverie. "Right, well I just wanted to clarify that I do in fact still have my son's best interests at heart."

"You've made that clear many times over. Spill it, Mayor." Emma joked.

Regina smiled at the easiness of their conversation before she cleared her throat and spoke. "I want you to stay because I'm terrified of raising him by myself any longer. I know that he loves me, but I feel like I don't have enough time to give to him, and I have zero time to focus on my own needs. I'm falling apart at the seams, and even though I love him, I still have nothing at all in common with him." She lied. She knew that she could have raised Henry on her own if it weren't for every other circumstance that stood between her and the curse, but the former queen needed Emma to feel like Regina really needed her (which she did, just not because of the reasons she had listed.)

Emma seemed to think about it for a few more moments before surrendering with a nod. "Alright. If it will help the kid out, and make it easier on you, I'll be the new sheriff around these here parts." She said with a terrible impression of a cowboy.

An impression that had caused Regina to smile as her heart swelled with adoration. She had found it adorable, although if asked, she would deny that fact until the day her soul was sent to the underworld.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I know this is moving slowly, but things are about to pick up. Please let me know if you enjoyed!**


	4. Chapter 4

Regina was ecstatic that she had convinced Emma to stay in Storybrooke, so as she sat in her office that afternoon, she had felt triumphant… Until she started to think more in-depth about her situation. This time traveling thing was confusing… but what was even more confusing was why Mother Superior had deemed Regina worthy of a second chance.

Was this all real? If it was real, was it permanent, or was Regina finally going to get an opportunity to be with Emma, only to have it all taken away from her and be placed back in reality where she would have to watch Emma vow to love the rum guzzling pirate for the rest of time?

Her stomach dropped at the thought of this all being a ploy or a form of revenge from the fairy. She decided then and there that she needed to know the truth before she got her hopes up. So, she told her secretary that she was going to take a half day, grabbed her jacket and her car keys, and sped her way over to the convent.

When she arrived 2356 Mulberry Court, Regina parked her car and walked up to the building. When she knocked on the nunnery's door, she felt her heart start beating rapidly with anticipation. She hoped beyond everything that the news would be that Blue genuinely did expunge everything that had happened and that Regina had a chance to start over and win Emma's heart.

The door to the monastery opened and revealed Astrid. The fairy-turned-nun looked confused about Regina's presence but quickly smiled politely to greet her. "Madame Mayor, what can I do for you?"

Regina tried to be polite, but she really didn't have the patience for these silly pleasantries at the moment. "Sister Astrid I" here to speak with your Mother Superior about a very urgent matter. If you'd be so kind as to lead me to her, I would very much appreciate it." She said as politely as she could, but it still came out very standoffish.

The awkward nun nodded and without another word turned and led the mayor through the abbey. When they reached a pair of French doors, the brown-haired vestal knocked three times on the door and waited patiently until the doors opened to reveal Reul. "Astrid, darling. Did you need something?" She asked, completely disregarding the mayor's presence.

Astrid spoke softly to the head nun. "Miss Mills would like to talk with you, Mother Superior." She said.

Blue seemed to be indifferent as she gestured for the mayor to enter what appeared to be her office. When the doors were closed behind them, the fairy sat at her desk and motioned for Regina to sit in the guest chair. "What can I do for you, Mayor Mills?" She asked.

"Well, first you can tell me if this is permanent or if you are planning to take it all away from me."

The blue fairy seemed thoroughly confused, and Regina was beginning to believe that her idea to confront the nun was a bad idea. "I beg your pardon, Madame Mayor, but I have absolutely no idea about what you are speaking of. I have no intention of taking anything from you."

Regina needed answers, and she refused to sit idly by and let the woman pretend not to have them. "THE TIME SPELL! Is it permanent? Or is this some sort of revenge to get back at me for something I did to you in the Enchanted Forest?"

The head Meissa Sister seemed to be utterly confused, and a bit scared now that the Mayor's rage had spiked, so the Raven Haired Queen decided that it was best that she left. "Sorry, to waste your time. You apparently have no recollection of our conversation. Enjoy your sexless life."

The Blue Fairy widened her eyes and dropped her jaw as Regina got up to walk away, but just as Regina reached the door, the woman spoke. "You might want to hurry, Miss Mills. Time is of the essence."

Regina swirled back around, preparing to continue the conversation further and to call out the Head Fairy for pretending to forget, but was met with an empty chair. She growled in frustration and headed for the exit.

On her way to the front door, she ran into another fairy and hostilely declared. "Your leader is playing a game that she won't win." Before walking out to her car.

As she drove down the street, she looked up at the clock tower and noticed that the hands were moving. She shook her head. "Time is getting really annoying."

 

**XXX**

 

The next morning, Regina walked into the sheriff's office with a Deputy badge in one pocket, and a box with two bear claws in it in her hand. She desperately disapproved of Emma's eating habits but wanted to use her inside knowledge to her benefit. Bringing in a box of sugary fried bread filled with trans-fat and other diabetes inducing components was just one way of doing so. Plus who cared about health risks? Once this was all done, and Emma was her's she planned on immediately casting a spell over the whole family preventing death from ever threatening them. She was never going to lose the ones she loved again. Especially not Henry or Emma.

As the mayor entered the precinct, she heard laughter coming from the corridors and smiled when she recognized it as Emma's, but as soon as she rounded the corner and saw the cause of the laughter, her heart sank. Graham was leaning into Emma whose back was against the wall. Graham; s hand was above her right shoulder, and he was talking in a soft voice.

Regina immediately saw red and rage took over. She slammed the box of bear claws onto the nearest flat surface and barged into the room. "SHERIFF HUMBERT WHAT ON GOD'S GREEN EARTH DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING!?" She yelled.

The man's face reddened fiercely as he jumped back from the blonde deputy and faced the brunette mayor. "I-I was um. Just having a conversation with Miss Swan madame mayor." He said fearfully.

Regina scoffed. "It looked to me like you were sexually harassing your new deputy!" She snarled.

Emma shook her head, no doubt intending to defend the man, but Regina had no craving to hear it. "There is no fraternizing between ranks in the first place, Sheriff. Since you seem to be unable to uphold the simple rules of your job, I very well can't trust you to uphold the law of this town." She walked over to the dumbstruck sheriff and yanked his badge off of his shirt. "As of this moment, there's a new sheriff in town," Regina announced as she walked over to the blonde woman that owned her heart and handed the badge over to her. "Congratulations, Sheriff Swan."

The blonde seemed to be stunned speechless, which Regina knew to be a challenging feat. She smiled warmly at the blond before turning her attention to the ex-sheriff. "You will now be her loyal Deputy, and if you step out of line, you will lose your job, and most likely your freedom. Is that understood?"

Graham shook his head. "No, not really. I don't understand why I-"

Regina interrupted the man. "Okay, let me explain it in simpler terms so that your tiny little brain can comprehend this very delicate situation. Emma is the sheriff now, and you're her bitch."

Emma chuckled from behind the mayor, and Regina couldn't help but smile genuinely at the knowledge that it was because of her.

The man, on the other hand, didn't seem to find this nearly as humorous. "This isn't fair! I was just talking to her!"

Regina shook her head. "No, you were most definitely not 'just' talking to her! You had her pinned against the wall!"

That's when the blonde finally cut in. "I could have easily escaped him," Emma said defensively.

Regina nodded. "Oh, I believe you. I just don't think that you should've had to, to begin with. This man needs to learn boundaries, and how to follow guidelines. You can go home for the day, Graham. If Sheriff Swan needs you, however, I expect your walkie-talkie to be turned on at all times. Am I clear?"

"I-"

"Am. I. _Clear_?" Regina asked forcefully.

The man nodded and quickly left the building.

Emma chuckled. "Wow, you're something else." She said with a shake of her head. "You don't seriously expect me to be the sheriff here, do you? I'm hardly cut out for that kind of responsibility just quite yet."

Regina laughed at that. Emma had absolutely no idea how amazing she was at being a sheriff and refused to let the blonde back out before she had the chance to find out. "You will be an incredible sheriff. I know it."

Emma raised her right brow and shook her head in disbelief before responding. "If you say so. I guess I can give it a try, but I'm going to need someone to show me the ropes."

Regina smirked. Perfect excuse to spend the day with her crush. "That's what I'm here for. But first." She said as she gestured to the doughnuts. "Breakfast!"

She walked over to Graham's desk and retrieved the box of baked goods and opened it to reveal its contents to the newly instated sheriff.

"Bear claws! Holy shit these are my favorite!" The savior announced as she ran over and grabbed one of the pastries. She took a huge bite of the doughy treat before speaking with her mouth half-full. "Deez are mah fav'rite." She said through her food.

Regina adored the Ill-mannered action, but refused to show it, and hid it with a scoff and roll of her eyes followed by: "You are _not_ going to do act like an uncivilized cave woman as the acting sheriff of Storybrooke." She said with a hint of a smile on her face to show that she was not being truly malicious. "These people are already imbeciles. They don't need to be governed by another one."

The blonde laughed and sat down at her desk. "Shut up and eat before I handcuff you!" As soon as she finished the sentence, the sheriff's mouth shut and her eyes widened as the surrounding air changed.

Regina's underwear became moist at the thought of being handcuffed by Emma, and she smirked. "Maybe another day, Miss Swan, but I am currently famished." She said before taking out the other Bear claw and biting into it as she sat down in the chair on the other side of the savior's desk.

Emma chuckled and shook her head as she finished her pastry. "You really are something else, you know." She said with a smirk.

Regina nodded. "So you've said for the umpteenth time today. You really should get a thesaurus. Maybe you'd learn a word or two to add to your limited vocabulary."

The sheriff smirked. "Or I could just take lessons from you. You seem to think you're a know-it-all."

Regina smirked. "I am a know-it-all, Dear."

Emma snorted. "What a shame. I was just starting to like you, too."

Both women laughed as they finished the box of bear claws.

When the desserts were finished, Emma sat back in her chair and asked the question that Regina really didn't want to answer. "What was up with that?"

Regina feigned obliviousness once more. "I have no idea what you're talking about." She said, trying her hardest to make eye contact with the woman that owned her heart.

Emma smiled amused and shook her head. "You're lying again. You can be very easy to read at times, you know. Especially to me for some reason. Just tell me the truth. Were you jealous?"

Regina cured Emma's superpower, and tried desperately to get out of the situation, but failed to respond in an acceptable amount of time; causing Emma to smile and excitedly snap her fingers. "You WERE!" She said as she fist pumped the air.

"I most certainly was not!" Regina insisted. Right now was not the time to admit she was IN LOVE with Emma, She would sound insane because as far as Emma knew, they had just met two days ago.

Emma chortled. "Liar." She said as she playfully threw a napkin at the mayor. “Fine, I promise not to go after him." She said. "You get dibs on sheriff hot-stuff."

Regina hated that Emma was attracted to Graham, she hated it even more that she was still the same oblivious idiot that she had been for six years before the time reversal. She sighed and smiled gratefully. At least this would be a good excuse to keep Emma away from Graham. "Thanks." She mumbled.

Emma nodded. "No problem. What are co-moms for?" She said teasingly.

Regina laughed at the other woman's idiotic term and nodded. "Right."

 

**XXX**

 

It had been an exciting month, Emma and Henry were bonding well together, and Regina and Emma had become terrific friends, and Regina was almost ready to ask her out on a date. But now Regina couldn't stop pondering on Mother Superior's statement. " _You better hurry. Time is of the essence._ "

What the hell was that supposed to mean? Was Emma going to fall in love with someone else soon if Regina didn't hurry and make a move? Would things happen sooner because of the choices Regina had made? Was this only temporary unless Regina won Emma's heart within a certain amount of time? What the hell was happening?

Regina was becoming infuriated by the vagueness of the nun's response. Why had she been pretending not to remember the time jump? Nothing was adding up. Nothing was _making sense_. Every spell book she studied never mentioned a time reversing spell or even _curse._

When her Mercedes reached its destination, she sighed as she got out of the car, and walked up to the school where she had been planning to pick up Henry. The school had called her and told her that Henry had been feeling ill and had a fever. She immediately dropped everything to pick him up. There was no way that she was about to let her baby boy suffer.

As she entered the building, she saw Emma talking to Mary Margaret and froze. They were talking to each other as if they had just met for the first time. Regina's heart shattered… There was no way in hell that she could keep the curse under wraps much longer… It wasn't right, nor was it fair to Emma.

But soon everything registered entirely, and she was confused as to why Emma was there. Before she could utter a word, Regina saw a pale, and weak Henry exit the office and plunge himself into Emma's arms.

The two adult women continued conversing for a few more moments before Emma picked up her son and spoke so that even Regina could hear her. "Alright, kid. We'd better call your mom. I'm not sure why the school would even call me." She said as she pulled out her phone.

"Because she isn't my mom, _you_ are!" Henry crooned. Hearing that broke Regina's heart. She was confused as to why Henry had reverted to his former beliefs about Regina when they had started to become close once more. She got ready to make her presence known but was stopped dead in her tracks by Emma's response to their son's hateful comment.

"No, Henry. I don't get that title. Regina gets that title because she raised you when I couldn't. She loved you when that was all I wanted to do. She gave you the life that you deserved. The life that _I_ could never have provided you with. You may think that she is the Evil Queen, but even if that were true she still gave you everything you have, and you should love her for that much alone. She is your mother. You are _her_ son. I wish that I could have given you everything she had, but I couldn't have, so we are both indebted to her for that, so the least we can do is to call her and let her know that I am bringing you home because you are sick. Understood?"

Henry looked at his birth mother with widened eyes, making him look even sicker than he had previously done. He nodded before lowering his head.

Regina's heart melted at the monolog Emma had just had, and she felt herself fill up with hope. If Emma felt nearly half as passionate about their relationship as she did about Regina most definitely being Henry's mother, there was no doubt in the mayor's mind that she could win Emma's affection. It would take som time, but it was definitely possible.

The former queen watched as the savior dialed on her phone and waited for her phone to ring. Immediately after it rang, she answered it and spoke into it. "Hello, Miss Swan. Let's take _our_ son home, shall we?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * * *
> 
> **Please let me know if you enjoyed!**


	5. Chapter 5

When they reached Regina's mansion, Henry was too sick to do much of anything, so Regina made him some homemade chicken soup, while Emma made him a fortress out of pillows, couch cushions, and blankets then set up the TV, so they could watch anything Henry wanted together. When the soup was done, and the movie was started, Henry laid in his fortress cuddled up with his storybook, while Emma and Regina sat on the couch together.

The movie was one that Regina had begged them not to put in. It was Disney's rendition of Snow White, and it was probably the worst decision she had ever made when she allowed Henry to buy it with his allowance last year. Either way, she was outvoted, and she sat silently while she tried desperately to drown out the movie. She was going over potion recipes when Emma's whisper broke through her musings.

"I don't understand why the Queen is so bitchy. There has to be _some_ reason that she hated Snow White. Her being the prettiest woman in the village doesn't quite justify all this hatred, and it's not very realistic. Plus, Snow White seems really ditsy. It doesn't make sense. This movie is exceptionally flawed."

Regina felt her stomach flutter, and she chuckled. "Yes, this movie most certainly is implausible."  
Emma smiled to the brunette. "I don't get why Henry insists that that woman is you. You are nothing like her."

That was enough right there for Regina to break. She scooted closer to the blonde and hesitantly placed her hand on the sheriff's knee. She looked down to see their sleeping son and smiled before she returned her attention to the blonde. "I'm glad you feel that way," She said, "Because I don't want anyone to see me as evil; especially not you or our son."

Emma smiled. "That's the second time you've called him that today."

Regina smiled. "Well, it is true, Miss Swan. He _is_ ours."

Emma smiled. "I like the sound of that."

Regina's heart stuttered at the look Emma was giving her. That smile made her remember just exactly why she fell in love with Emma Swan. She fell in love with her because she's a bad ass with a heart of gold. She's unapologetic, honest, and kind. She's the type of woman that you'd go to for back up in a war zone…. She's the type of woman you marry.

And _by god_ did she want to marry her…

"I'm glad you do." She croaked out.

Emma smiled and stood up. "It's already seven, and I still have a boat load of paperwork to finish, so I'd better get back to it." She said with a regretful smile.

Regina stood up as well. "No! Don't worry about that! Paperwork can wait. How about a glass of cider?" She asked.

Emma sighed and nodded in agreement. "I can't say no to that, now can I?"

Regina smirked. "Most definitely not. No one can say no to me."

Emma quirked a brow. "I can say no, Madame Mayor. I just don't want to right now."

Regina smirked; loving every bit of fire the woman before her, had; and grateful that no one had the opportunity to snuff it out of her.

"I do love a challenge." She said as they entered the study.

Emma chuckled. "I can tell, but sometimes having things come easily is a good thing too. Not everything has to be a challenge. I wish something would just be easy for me for a change."

Regina nodded. She completely understood where Emma was coming from. Everything in the blonde's life had been a challenge up until this point.

As they settled on the couch with their glasses of cider, Regina tried to find a way to bring up the conversation she overheard between Emma and Henry. "You know, I've never heard anyone talk as kindly about me as you did at the school today." She said casually.

Emma's face reddened. "I-… I don't think it's a big deal. I only spoke the truth."

Regina smiled. "The mere fact that you believe the things you said is enough to make this a big deal, you know. You're a great friend, and I feel so lucky to have found you. I know I am a very snarky person, but when it comes to you, I never mean any of the rude jokes."

Emma chuckled. "I know you don't. It's kind of an endearing trait when it comes from you. If it were any other person, I'd knock them out."

"How classy," Regina said with a smirk as she raised her glass of cider to her lips.

"Well, we all have our downfalls… yours is snarky jokes; mine is my fists." Emma laughed.

Regina laughed right back before realizing something that hurt. Emma was always very kind, open, and friendly to her, but every time someone brought up their 'friendship' Emma would shy away from the conversation and smile tightly. Even when Regina referred to Emma as her friend, the same reaction would come from the blonde. "Why is it that after all these weeks you still have not referred to me as your friend?"

Emma frowned before taking a long sip of her cider. (Regina wasn't quite sure if the blonde was aware that it was a non-alcoholic beverage) Then she placed it back down on the coaster and exhaled loudly through her nose. "Don't take this personally, but even though you've been extremely welcoming, and kind to me, I feel like you're hiding something from me, and I've learned the hard way that not everyone that is nice to you is your friend. Especially if you feel like they're hiding something. I've come to know that Just because they hang around you and laugh with you doesn't mean that they are there for you and that just because they say they have your back doesn't mean that they won't stab you in it. Especially when Jealousy is a problem… like at the station last month with Graham… You admitted you were jealous, and that just puts me on edge even more because one wrong move with Graham could make a huge mess between us, so I try to distance myself from 'friends'… I want to trust you, I do… But something feels off, and I am trying my hardest to work through it for Henry's sake, but it's hard to do when I can't help but feel like something is going on that I'm not aware of."

Regina immediately realized how bad a decision it was to lie to Emma; especially about the reason she was jealous when she caught Graham flirting with the savior. Her plan had backfired entirely, and she wished more than anything that she could restart this encounter. She sighed and went to speak again when she noticed that the room was frozen. Emma was stood still, the TV was no longer making noise anymore, and lo-and-behold, Blue was standing there; with a look of disappointment on her face. "You really should choose your words more wisely, Mayor. You can't keep reverting time, or you'll never get anywhere, and you'll be stuck in a loophole you will most certainly not enjoy."

Regina jumped up from the couch and pinned Reul to the wall. "I NEED ANSWERS!" She screamed. "PLEASE! Just give them to me! I can't take this guessing game."

The fairy rolled her eyes. "What is it that you want to know? I figured being a magical being yourself that you would've known the magical practice that you are currently experiencing."

"Well I don't, okay!? Just tell me _, is this real?_ "

Blue shrugged, "Only if you get the desired outcome, otherwise, no."

Regina was infuriated with the nun's elusive explanation. "What is that supposed to mean!?"

Blue sighed. "Well, now that I know you aren't familiar with this type of magic it makes more sense that you wasted so much time." She said with a sigh.

Regina was getting ready to use magic and decapitate the woman before her, but the woman spoke again before she could. "I can't give away the exact ending that you will receive if things go the way you want them to. I can, however, tell you that if you don't win Emma's heart over the other two of her True Loves before Henry is kidnapped and taken to Neverland; you will be reverted to Emma's wedding day, and she will say 'I do.'"

Regina gulped. "And if I do manage to get her to choose me over the other two imbeciles?"

The woman shrugged. "Then it won't happen."

Regina nodded then had another thought. "What if I need more time to win her heart and I prevent Henry from being taken?"

The fairy looked impressed. "Well, if that happens you will be stuck in this timeline until you either win Emma's heart or you die."

Regina gulped. "So it'd probably be best if I start trying harder?" She asked.

The fairy rolled her eyes. "Yes. Precisely what I tried to tell you at the convent, but you refused to heed my warning, apparently."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Spare me the lecture."

Mother Superior glared at her. "You are not in any position to be making demands, Queenie."

Regina sighed. "I suppose not, but please do enlighten me on this… Why exactly are you helping me? You aren't exactly my biggest fan. Is this some sort of game?"

Reul shook her head. "No, I just hate Hook more than you, and although he could make Emma moderately happy, I think you have the possibility of making her even happier."

Regina nodded, accepting that answer, but then realized that Neal could still win. "And Neal? Could he possibly come out the victor in this new timeline?"

"Yes." The fairy said simply. "It is possible that he could, because Emma will always love him regardless of what happens in any timeline, and if for some reason he weasels his way into her heart before you manage to, he will triumph over you. If that happens, you will also be stuck in this timeline. Are you sure you don't want me just to send you back to the original timeline?"

Regina shook her head. "NO! Do NOT reinstate that timeline! I will kill you! Give Emma a real chance to choose. I realize now that staying silent was stupid. I should have told her how I felt, but I didn't know how unhappy she genuinely was until I came back to this year and saw the real Emma… not the beaten down housewife version of her. She deserves a choice, and I'm going to give it to her. I just hope her choice will be me."

Blue nodded. "All three of you could give her a happy ending. Some just happier than others. Neal can give her a genuinely happy ending as could you. The pirate can give her a… let's call it a content ending… Nothing special, just... Not horrible."

"And without her what kind of endings would we each get?"

"Neal will either die around the same time as before, or he will be content with a father-son relationship with Henry, and a semi-serious girlfriend, but he will still die younger than usual if Emma doesn't choose him. Killian will return to pirating if Emma doesn't pick him, and he will have lots of one night stands, but never find anything fulfilling in life."

Regina didn't like the sound of her odds… Without Emma, her true loves didn't seem to have any sort of happiness. Her heart pounded with futility against her rib cage. Dread climbed through her as an invisible demon that caused her stomach to become nauseous. All she could do was ask and hope that the answer was at least somewhat better than the others. "What about me?" She asked with a quivering voice. "What would my Emma-less fate be?"

The other woman smiled apologetically at the queen. "You don't want that answer, Regina."

Regina ignored the fairy's warning. "TELL ME."

The fairy sighed and shook her head. "If she chooses someone other than you, you both will cling desperately to your friendship, and eventually the man will become insecure and beg her to stop seeing you. She will listen to them, and then they will leave Storybrooke once Henry turns 18."

Regina felt somewhat delighted knowing that Emma would still in some form choose her, but it was devastating to hear that she would leave her permanently afterward. "Then what?" She asked hesitantly.

The fairy sighed. "Then you will go searching for the savior, but never find her. You will become depressed and then, well… You will grow old and die."

Regina didn't believe that for a second. There was no way in hell that she wouldn't be able to find the woman that owned her soul. "You're lying! Emma would never just abandon her entire family for a man! She wouldn't abandon them for _anyone_! Tell me what will _really_ happen!"

The fairy frowned. "I was paraphrasing. I didn't say Emma never came back to visit her family; I just said that you never found her…"

Regina shook her head. "NO! You're just as worthless at telling the future as Tinker Bell is telling people who their True Loves are! Because Robin Hood was _not_ mine."

Reul laughed. "You are quite right about that; he most certainly was not."

"Then tell me the truth!"

"You can't change the prophecy, but you can prevent yourself from losing Emma by winning her heart. As you said, Emma has a choice, and that isn't predestined, neither is your future with her if she chooses you."

Regina furrowed her brows. "What do you mean our future isn't predetermined? Why is the other two if mine isn't?"

The blue fairy smiled. "Because your love will be the first True Love relationship to be chosen. If you two get together, it'll be a happy ending, but your actions will not be determined by the Author. It will be determined by you as a couple. Your love would be the truest love ever to exist. But keep in mind, it will be difficult to maneuver if you do not hurry up and win her love."

Regina was baffled. She hadn't expected such a colossal declaration to be bestowed upon her. "How likely is it that she will choose me?"

Blue rolled her eyes. "It's an even likelihood, so each of you has a 33.333% chance that she will choose you."

"And if Neal dies the way he did before?"

"You will have a 60% chance of her choosing you IF you tell her the truth about fairy tales before the curse breaks."

Regina was delighted to hear that. "What if he still kidnaps me?"

The fairy rolled her eyes. "You've already done things to alternate the timeline. He will not kidnap you this time around."

Regina's eyes widened. "What else have I done to alter it?!"

"Nothing as significant as that, but you should be careful. You might speed up the process of the fail safe debacle, or you might slow it down. You never know which one it is, so make sure your decisions are wise."

Regina nodded her head. "I will most certainly rethink my plans… but can you please help me with the current mess I am in? I think that I should refrain from asking her the question about why she refuses to call us friends, and I need to admit everything."

The fairy sighed and shook her head. "I can't keep doing this, Regina." She said.

The brunette thought things over for a few seconds and then came to the conclusion that the question was nothing she couldn't deal with. She would only rely on Reul if there were no other option. "You're right, unfortunately. I think I can clean up this mess and straighten things out between her and me."

Blue nodded and without another word, disappeared. As soon as the fairy was gone everything around Regina began to move once again. She looked at the blonde who had just spilled her heart out to the mayor and smiled. "You're right; I have been hiding something," Regina said.

Emma frowned. "Oh?"

Regina nodded. "This." She said before collecting the blonde's soft, plump lips with her own. The kiss was powerful and overwhelming. It sent a fire through her body, and when Emma kissed her back, the mayor thought she would pass out from happiness. No other kiss in the world felt as miraculous as the one she was currently sharing with the blonde.

Regina had been craving this moment for over six years, and now that she had it, she was going to make the best of it. She parted her lips, and swiped her tongue along Emma's pale bottom lip, begging the woman for entrance. By doing so, she not only got access to the woman's mouth, but she got a low moan from the blonde as well.

Their tongues danced together, and soon Regina moaned when she felt the sheriff's hands slide up and down her torso. Regina gained courage from the younger woman's action, and wrapped her arms around the blonde, pulling Emma even close to her. She leaned back, and rested her head against the armrest of the couch, pulling Emma on top of her. They separated for breath and rested their foreheads together. Regina lifted her right hand slowly to the savior's cheek and pushed a strand of loose blonde curls behind Emma's ear. She gulped and whispered the truth. "From the moment I met you, you intrigued me in ways that no one else has ever succeeded at doing. Now, I want you in my life because I'm afraid I've fallen for you."

Emma shook her head and stood up, causing Regina to deflate. "No. No, no, no. Regina, please don't do this. You can't even begin to understand all the reasons that this would never work. We'd just ruin our friendship and tear the kid's life apart."

Regina knew that this could be the reaction, and her hope rose once again; Emma _wanted_ her. She was just terrified that it wouldn't work out because of her abandonment issues. "We can go as slow as you'd like, Emma. We don't even have to go public until you're ready, but I see no reason not to give this a shot if this is something that we'd both like to do."

Emma shook her head. "We can't do this. Because this never works out for me, and your friendship is the only one I've really ever experienced so please don't do this, Regina. We barely know each other. We've only been friends for scarcely a month. You were just in love with Graham like three weeks ago. This is just a passing attraction."

"Emma, I was never in love with Graham, I was jealous because he was touching you, and I didn't want him to because I already had a crush on you. That's what I've been hiding."

Emma's eyes went wide. "Oh," She said in a squeaky voice.

Regina chuckled. She absolutely loved this woman, and now that she had tasted her lips, she was irrevocably addicted. "So, what do you say, Miss Swan? Will you give this a chance and go on a date with me this weekend?"

Emma gulped and nodded. "Definitely."

Regina smiled, This was going to work… It _had_ to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really am nervous about this chapter, as I've said, this is the most complex story I've ever written, and I'm not the most confident about this story... Please let me know what you thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **People have been asking me who Reul is, so I figured I will clarify. Reul is Mother Superior's name given to her from the curse.**

Regina was euphoric that Emma had agreed to a date, and she was far past anxious. She was more along the lines of terrified. The mayor was terrified because she wanted to get every single aspect of this date correct. It was the queen's one (and only) chance to sweep the beautiful blonde savior up off of her feet and win the young woman's heart, and she didn't want to ruin it. So, as Regina sat in her office the next day writing up reports on her computer, she was thinking about all the places that she could take the blonde for the most romantic night of her life.

Suddenly she heard nothing but silence outside, and rose her head from the laptop, just in time to see Mother Superior appear. "Reul? What are you doing here? Everything is going great!"

The blue fairy frowned. "Because of your new path, the other True Loves will be arriving sooner than you'd like."

An ice cold wave of dread overtook Regina's senses. She was running out of time faster than she had anticipated. She was going to lose Emma if she didn't hurry. "What is there to do? How can I slow them down?"

The fairy rolled her eyes. "You can't slow them down, Queenie. All you can do is hurry up and win over Emma, or just let it go. You still have time before they arrive, but I just wanted to let you know. You've got to win Emma over enough so that she will stay loyal to you when the other two temptations arrive.."

Regina nodded. "I can do that. I _will do it."_

Reul nodded with a prideful expression on her face. "I have faith in you. Just don't mess this up. You two would be an adorable couple."

Regina smirked. "We **will** be."

The fairy rolled her eyes. "Don't get too cocky just yet, Madame Mayor. Things can still get hairy if you get too comfortable." And with that, the nun was gone.

Regina let out a breath causing her lips to make a raspberry. She let out an aggravated groan as she slammed her laptop shut. She couldn't focus on her paperwork when she needed to plan the perfect date and fast.

There were very few places in the town that Regina could take Emma for a date that was actually decent and no place at all that would be _romantic_ **.** She thought about Tony's Diner for a moment and then scoffed and shook her head as she remembered that Hook had taken Emma there for their first date. "He's an imbecilic, classless cheapskate of a man." She muttered to herself.

Regina finally settled on just getting a babysitter for the whole weekend instead of only one night, and taking Emma somewhere outside of town for both days instead of Saturday. She looked up places on the web that would be as romantic as she wanted and felt anger roar through her like a pack of hungry lions. There was absolutely _**no**_ place within a forty minute radius that was even remotely romantic. She pulled her phone out and texted Emma.

 _Regina:_ **Hello, Darling. I have a proposition for you.**

She sent the text and impatiently and nervously waited for a reply. After fifteen minutes, she finally received the text message she had been eagerly awaiting.

 _Emma:_ **The last time I heard those words, I ended up pregnant and abandoned. Try rewording that, Madame Mayor ;)**

Happiness flowed through the queen's body as a chuckle escaped her and a smile made its presence on her face. She shook her head in adoration before responding.

 _Regina:_ **Must you be so uncouth, Dear? Although I can't deny that the thought has crossed my mind, I am not propositioning you for sex.**

Regina loved the fact that _ **finally**_ , after _years_ of waiting, Emma was flirting with her. She hoped that it would last for the rest of eternity.

 _Emma:_ **Good. Because I'm not that easy to attain, "Dear."**

The mayor rolled her eyes with a fond smirk.

 _Regina:_ **May I please get along with my proposition, Sheriff?**

 _Emma:_ **No, not yet.**

Regina laughed aloud at her crush's antics and prepared to type a text, but before she could send it, her phone received another message.

 _Emma:_ **Okay, now you can. :-P**

The brunette woman rolled her eyes once more while her heart melted in her chest at the adorableness of Emma's actions.

 _Regina:_ **I think that we should go away for the entire weekend, not just Saturday night.**

Regina stared at her phone as she saw the bubble pop up signalizing that the blonde sheriff was responding. She held her breath anxiously, as fear crept in. Had she been too brazen?

Finally, her phone dinged, announcing the arrival of a new text message. The redeemed queen exhaled the deep breath that she had held during her wait, and picked up her phone to read the text.

 _Emma:_ **Uh... That sounds like you want to get me alone so you can get into my pants.**

Regina's stomach dropped, and her heart began racing rapidly. She had just messed everything up with her vagueness. Her mind filled with dread and fear as negative thoughts started to cloud her brain.

_Is this the point where everything is destroyed because of my idiotic comment?_

_Did I just ruin my second chance at true happiness?_

_Am I going to be stuck in this timeline forever?_

_Will she choose Neal or Hook now?_

_Will Henry want to live with her?_

Regina finally shook herself out of her musings and immediately started typing up an explanation when there was a knock at her door. The mayor huffed in annoyance at the unfortunate timing and yelled. "Who is it?"

Without replying, the intruder opened the door and entered. Regina raised her head from her phone, preparing to chew out the uninvited guest, but was stunned speechless when the visitor was revealed to be Emma.

"It's your date for this weekend." The sheriff said with a smirk.

Regina glared at the blonde-haired woman. It seemed as though she had sent Regina into a panic for no reason whatsoever. Clearly, the blonde beauty wasn't actually upset with her. If she were, she wouldn't be smiling that goddamned alluring smile. "You do realize that I was terrified, do you not? I thought that I had upset you with my suggestion."

Emma furrowed her brows for a moment, then realization spread across her face, and her head tilted back as she laughed hysterically. "Oh my god. You thought that I was serious? Regina, you really need to learn how to take sarcasm!"

Regina gritted her teeth. It was not that she didn't understand sarcasm, in fact, she understood it quite well. She had been mastering it since before Emma was in diapers, she just couldn't tell that it was sarcasm through a measly text. "I know sarcasm, dear... I mastered it many years ago. I just didn't quite understand the context of the text."

Emma nodded. "Mhm." She said with a seductive wink that sent arousal pooling down to the brunette mayor's core.

Regina fought back a chuckle. She was supposed to be irritated, not amused. She feigned annoyance. "Miss Swan, your juvenile tendencies aren't as amusing as you seem to think." She said as she raised her chin.

Emma quirked her brow and half-frowned. "Okay, Madame Mayor. Whatever you say. Also, the answer is no. I can't stay the weekend with you, but I am free all day Saturday. I just wanted to come by and tell you that, and ask if you wanted to help me pick out an apartment Sunday?"

Regina fought back a frown... She really was looking forward to spending all weekend in Portland Oregon with the sheriff, but apartment hunting with the blonde could be a reasonable compromise. She smiled because she would still be getting a chance to spend the weekend with the woman she loved. "Sure! That sounds lovely, Emma."

She had no idea what she would plan for their date now, but there had to be something in this god-awful town to be a romantic setting.

**XXX**

Wednesday night, Henry had fallen ill again, it wasn't making much sense why the boy kept getting sick, and it was getting concerning because it wasn't even flu season. Regina and Emma had tended to him all day, and now it was his bedtime. Regina had left Emma upstairs with Henry to grab him so more cold medicine, as she walked up the stairs she heard her sickly son ask Emma a question, that, quite honestly, Regina desperately needed to know the answer to.

"Ma… Do you believe in love?"

Regina slowed her paces and stood in front of the door. She cracked it open slowly and peeked through just in time to catch Emma's flabbergasted expression.

"I- uh... Kid, that's a really tough question. From my experience, you can love with all your heart and not get anything in return." She said, which crushed Regina… Emma had no faith in love. How could the brunette ever expect Emma to give her a real chance if she didn't even believe in love, to begin with?

Henry frowned. "But do you think that there is true love? That I could find it some day?"

Emma smiled. "I think it's out there; you just have to be careful. Whenever you decide to open up your heart to someone, and you fall in love… fall in love with someone who wants to know all about you. Someone who wants to know your favorite color, and just how you like your Hot Chocolate. Someone who loves your laugh and would do absolutely anything to hear it. Someone who puts your head on your chest because they want to listen to your heartbeat." Emma said as she looked off into the distance and smiled sadly.

"Keep going." Their son pleaded.

It looked like the boy's voice shook Emma out of her reverie. Emma smiled and continued to speak. "Fall in love with someone who makes you question why you were afraid to love in the first place. With someone that wouldn't dream of hurting you or anyone you love. Someone who falls in love with your flaws and thinks that you're perfect with them fully visible. Fall in love with someone who does all that for you and who you'd do all of those things for in return… That's what true love is, Kid."

Regina's heart broke. Emma was talking as if she had experienced that all before, and had lost it. The mayor wished beyond anything that she could be the sheriff's next true love, but it sounded as if she were still in love with… _Neal._ Regina didn't care though… She would fight to the death for the blonde.

Henry studied his blonde mother for a few moments, and Regina felt like the conversation had concluded, but just as she was about to walk through the door, her son dropped a bombshell.

"Is that what you felt for my father?"

Emma looked down to the floor and grimaced. "I think it's time for you to get some shut-eye, kid. I'll go see what's taking your mom so long." She stood up, and Regina took that as her cue to enter into the room.

"I'm sorry it took so long." She said as she poured the liquid into the measuring cup that came with it and handed the measured liquid to her son. "Drink up. It will make you feel better soon."

Henry drank the medicine and returned the little plastic cup to his brunette mother. "Thanks, mom." He said as he laid back onto his pillow.

Regina's heart swelled at how easily her baby boy called her 'mom' again. She smiled down at him. "You're welcome, my darling. Now you get some rest okay?"

The truest believer nodded with a smile. "Okay. Goodnight moms." He said to his mothers.

Emma smiled towards her son, and the smile melted Regina's heart. "Goodnight, kid." The blonde said as she leaned down and kissed Henry on the forehead. "Get better soon."

Regina leaned down and kissed her son. "Goodnight, my prince." She whispered before she stood up and exited the room.

She walked down the stairs and saw that Emma was getting her coat from the hall closet.

"Are you leaving so soon?" She asked as a frown grew upon her face. This wasn't how the night was supposed to end. She thought for sure that they'd have a drink together before Emma left for the evening.

"Uh... Yeah, paperwork and stuff." Emma said nervously.

Regina knew what this was. Henry had hit a nerve, and now Emma needed space, so she decided to play the oblivious card, and begrudgingly let Emma leave for the night. "Oh, well… Alright. I'll talk to you tomorrow though, right?"

Emma avoided eye contact as she nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Of course. Gotta go!" She said as she wrapped Regina up in a loose hug and then hurried out the door.

Regina sighed. Emma was still in love with Neal, and that was a considerable disadvantage, but it wasn't going to stop her from trying…On the contrary. It would just make her fight harder, because to Regina, Emma was a goddess; her sun and her moon. Emma was a luscious garden of beauty and Regina's unsinkable ship through a treacherous storm.

And, well… it didn't hurt that she had a nice ass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Please let me know if you enjoyed!**


	7. Chapter 7

Regina sat on her couch after Emma left and contemplated her next move. Henry was safe and asleep; nothing would bother him for the rest of the night, so if she really wanted to the queen could sneak out and visit Emma in her room at Granny's. She evaluated the pros and cons of staying or going and decided that she would make sure that the sheriff was doing alright.

She grabbed her jacket and her keys before heading out to her car, but when she reached her car door, she was intercepted by Sidney. A man she had long ago forgotten about.

"Madame Mayor. I think we need to discuss your ongoing relations with Miss Swan."

Regina was in no temperament to deal with the man and tried to move past him. "There is nothing to converse about, Mr. Glass. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have places I need to be."

The man stood firm in front of the Mayor's car. "There are some things that you don't seem to know about her. For illustration, that she is a criminal?"

Regina gnashed her teeth in vehemence. She did _not_ like the way the journalist was talking about the woman she loved. "She was framed and was a juvenile when it occurred. Therefore, the records should've been expunged so the only way you got access to those records would be if you hacked a federal database to obtain them. Is that what you're saying you did, Mr. Glass? Did you commit a felony in order to uproot Sheriff Swan's misdemeanor?" He asked as she slowly pinned the older gentleman to the car.

"I- Well, if you put it that way it sounds immoral. But I only did it to make sure that Miss Swan wasn't going to take advantage of you. She seems very strange to me."

Regina was done with this man's crude comments towards the woman that owned her soul. She pinned him further to the car and stared into his eyes to make sure that he knew she was serious. "Emma Swan is a literal goddess because she is not afraid to be who she truly is. When you grow up a girl, the world tells you the things that you are supposed to be: emotional, beautiful, proper, conservative, and wanted. But when you are those things the world tells you that they are inferior, illogical, weak, vain and empty. Emma realized that, and instead of letting it destroy her, she rose above it all. She had no one, and nothing, and yet here she is, Strong, courageous, independent, and loving as ever because she saw through the bullshit of this world. So you go ahead and say that she is 'strange' and all I will continue to hear out of your mouth is a misogynistic pig trying to belittle a woman for being happy with whom she is." She shoved him hard against the door of her car, before backing away and turning towards her driveway. "I've decided that I'd prefer to walk. Goodnight, Mr. Glass." She said as she walked to the end of her driveway. Once she reached her gate, she turned around and addressed the man again. "Oh, and Sidney?"

The man turned to face her. "Ma'am?"

"If you _ever_ try to harm Emma Swan in any way at all, ever again, I will destroy you. Even if it's the last thing, I do!"

The reporter nodded and visibly swallowed. "I understand, Mayor."

"Good boy.' She said with an evil smirk. She turned to walk down the sidewalk when she noticed the blonde haired woman sitting on a bench at the end of the road. Regina noticed the savior was bent forward with her head face resting in her palms, and her elbows on her thighs. Concern filled up Regina's entire soul, and she walked as fast as she could without running towards her.

When she was about ten feet away from the bench, she paused; her steps and gently tried to get Emma's attention without scaring her. "Emma?"

Emma raised her head slowly, revealing tear-stained cheeks, and swollen red eyes. Regina saw the pain in Emma's eyes, and her heart felt like it had been thrown into a volcano. It burned so excessively that it took the oxygen right out of her lungs. Her stomach where she usually felt a ballet of butterflies, felt like an anvil had just dropped on it. She ran forward and collected Emma in her arms. The blonde didn't return the embrace. Instead, Emma only sobbed into Regina's shoulder. "Emma! Oh, sweetheart, what's wrong?"

Regina held her True Love in her arms as the younger woman cried. The mayor had to fight back her own sobs because seeing Emma so emotionally devastated was something that was almost fatally heartbreaking. Whatever caused this, whoever had done this to Emma, would feel the wrath of the Evil Queen. "Emma, darling. Please. Please talk to me. I want to help, but I have no idea how."

Emma was taking quick and deep breaths as she attempted to stop crying. When she had successfully prevented the tears from falling, she pulled out of Regina's hold. She wiped her eyes with her hands and smiled a watery smile that cut deep at Regina's soul. "I- I'm sorry, R'gina." She said.

Although Regina was devastated from seeing the woman she loved emotionally broken down, the mayor had to confess that the way the sheriff said her name made her heart flip in her chest. "What on Earth do you have to be sorry about?"

Emma swallowed thickly before replying. "For running out like that. It was kind of rude. I just... I had to get out of there, and I couldn't make it back to the B& B before breaking down."

Regina frowned. "So you parked at the end of my street and sat on a bench alone in the middle of the night, instead of coming to me? Emma, I know we're at a complicated point in our… _friendship,_ but I hope you do know that you can come to me with anything, you've got a hold on me, and whether our date goes well, or not we will always be friends." Regina said. The brunette queen knew that if their date wasn't efficacious she would be wholly destroyed.

"I kn-know that, I just... I didn't think that you'd want to hear this. Maybe Mary-Margaret is still awake…"

Regina's heart started thudding rapidly with panic. Why in God's name had she not realized that Emma had been talking to Mary Margaret as of recently? "M-Mary Margaret?" She stuttered.

Emma nodded. "Yeah, I don't know why, but for some reason, I feel a closeness to her."

Regina gulped. The process was happening faster than she had anticipated. She had tried her hardest to keep Emma away from Snow White, but apparently, the sheriff had gone around her mother when Regina had been away. "You do, huh?" She asked.

Emma smiled sadly. "Yeah. But don't worry; it's not like what we have."

Regina's heart soared at Emma's reassurances "What we have?" She asked as waves of hope crashed through her heart.

"Yeah." The blonde said with a fond smile. "We have a different kind of connection. One that I'd really like to explore."

Regina gulped. She really hoped that Emma was about to kiss her.

Emma frowned. "But I need to tell you some things before we can. Because I'm not sure, you want all the baggage I come with."

The Mayor's heart ached at Emma's insecurity. She wanted more than anything to wipe it away. "Emma, you could have been a mass murderer in the past, and I'd still want you." She said.

Emma frowned. "I'm nothing that you think I am…" She said quietly, but still loud enough for Regina to hear her."

Regina sat down on the bench close enough to Emma that their thighs were touching. "Emma, Darling. Your past isn't who you are, it made you who you are, and I am just thankful that you become the person I know and adore today. So, please don't feel obligated to tell me anything that makes you uncomfortable." The queen said, and she meant every word of it because she already knew about Emma's past, so there was nothing the younger woman could say that would shock her. In all honesty, if she heard Emma talk about her terrible childhood, and abusive foster parents her heart would most likely shatter into billions of microscopic pieces out of guilt and devastation.

"Are you sure? I don't want you to feel like I don't trust you."

Regina felt guilt course through her. Emma trusted her, and she was betraying that trust by keeping such a huge secret. She tried her hardest to ignore the guilt, but it still dug into her chest like a freshly-sharpened knife. "I know you trust me, but I'm not worried about any of this right now. I'm more concerned about what has you crying on a roadside bench at ten o'clock at night."

Emma wiped her tears once more. "Are you sure you want to talk about it?"

Regina gulped. _No, I'm not sure at all. This might just kill me._ "Of course, I am, darling. As long as you're sad, I will not be able to be happy."

Emma took a deep breath and spoke. "When I was waiting with Henry for you to get the flu medicine, Henry asked me if I believe in love."

Regina died inside as soon as Emma said those words. This _was_ all about Neal. "I don't see how that garners a heartbroken breakdown on the side of the street, dear. Will you please elaborate on what is bothering you?"

Emma let out a shaky breath before explaining further. "Well, the last time I loved, it destroyed me. It gave me a criminal record, a teen pregnancy, a prison sentence, and a broken heart. None of which I was ready for. He abandoned me, and left me to take the fall for his crime, and then ditched me. I hate to say it, but even after all these years, I wonder what might have been. I loved that man with every muscle in my body. Because if he had stayed, I wouldn't have given Henry up for adoption. I would have been happily married to him, and we would have our own home down in Tallahassee. We might have even had more kids. I don't know. What I do know is that I miss what I had with him. We could joke about everything. We had this chemistry that I've never had with anyone else… He and I just… _got_ each other because we had basically the same life. Our parents didn't want us, threw us away, and then we had to fend for ourselves. I loved him with every last ounce of my soul, but there were times, in between the moments of pure happiness, that he could be selfish, and demanding, yet, no matter what, we found a way to make it work. Because I didn't want it to lose him, and I would have done anything to make sure that I didn't. When I was arrested, I had just found out that I was pregnant, and I realized as they were taking my mug shot that Neal had done it on purpose. That he had finally left me and set me up to take _his_ fall. And now, now I hate him. I _hate_ him because I will always love him no matter what he did to me because he was the one who helped me survive; he was the one who taught me that I was lovable and could find happiness. I hate him because he gave me all of that when I thought I would never have it, and then just left me and took everything away from me all over again. So when Henry brought up love, I didn't know what to say, because I felt like you and I have a strong connection, one that might be just as strong as the one I had with his father. So, it not only scares me to admit that, but it hurts to think about it as well. So, I'm sorry for running out, but I just can't help but be scared."

Regina gulped. "If you need more time, I can give that to you." She said. The mayor knew that if Emma took her up on that offer, she would lose her forever, but she couldn't force Emma into something that she still needed time for. That wasn't right, and she wasn't going to be selfish and take from Emma something that she wasn't ready to give. It would leave them both miserable.

Emma shook her head. "No, there comes a time that you realize that some people do more harm than good no matter how much you love them. He did about equal amounts of both, so he really wouldn't be worth it."

Regina's heart soared. Emma was willing to go on their date despite her breakdown; which meant that the regal woman still had a chance to win her over in time to have Emma committed to Regina for Neal's arrival. Things were looking up, but she had to ask. "You deserved better than what Neal gave you, Darling. A real man can't stand to see his lover hurting, and he makes decisions to make sure that he will never be responsible for their pain. He certainly doesn't sound like that type of man. He doesn't sound like a man at all. He sounds like a boy, and you deserve a man."

Emma smiled sadly. "He was manly at times… but you're right."

Regina let out a shaky breath as anticipation for the answer to her next question filled her whole body. "If you ever saw him again, what would you say to him?" She asked.

"I would say that I think what hurts the most is that I gave my all to him, and stood by him through thick and thin no matter what. That I was the one who put up with his bullshit. I was the one who actually cared about him I was the one that stuck around when there was no one else that even cared. I was the one that loved him when he gave me every reason not to. I put up with everything and gave him all that I had, and then, out of the blue he just gave up on me and left me like I was nothing. The one thing I would have never done, he did without hesitation. I would say that because he did that, I don't know if I could ever forgive him. I don't know if I could even look at him without wanting to cut his dick off. He abandoned me and took away the little that I did have. That's what I would say to him."

Regina smiled. Hearing Emma's speech brought a bit of peace to her heart but frightened her because there was still a chance that as soon as Emma saw the man, her heart would remember how she used to feel for the man. "It's not your fault that he left you, you know." She declared.

Emma snorted. "I've been telling myself that for years, but I just don't understand why he would leave if it wasn't because he couldn't love me anymore."

Regina vehemently shook her head. "It's not your fault. It's his for not being man enough to handle you. Because sometimes you'll just be too much woman for a man. You'll be too smart, too beautiful, too strong, and that makes weak men feel like less of a man. That isn't on you, that's on the man for being a coward. Because they will either leave, or try to make you feel like you have to be less of a woman, but the biggest mistake you could make would be to let him make you feel like it's your fault that his ego is hurt. Don't blame his stupidity on yourself. It was his fault for abandoning you. Not yours."

Emma smiled. "You're really an incredible person, Regina. Thank you, I usually believe that, but sometimes doubt clouds my mind, and I forget that I couldn't have stopped him if I tried."

The brunette into eyes as green as emeralds. She looked so composed again; you couldn't even tell that less than five minutes prior, she had broken down. That was the sign of an internal strength that Regina had forgotten Emma had within her, and it amazed her that someone had that type of strength. "I'm amazed every time I look at you."

Emma flushed and lowered her head with a shy smile. "You are?"

Regina nodded as she placed a cupped finger under the blonde's chin and gently raised her head so that their eyes met. "I am. And not just because of your looks, but also because every time I look at you I see everything I've ever wanted staring back at me."

Emma's breath hitched, and Regina heard the gasp. The brunette gulped and averted her eyes for a moment as trepidation set in. Had she gone too far? _This_ Emma barely knew her. She slowly fluttered her eyes back to the blonde's face, but they refused to move from the blonde's inviting lips. The lips that she had finally gotten to taste after years of longing. To her surprise, Emma's mouth started to curve upwards into a smile.

"You know, for a snarky bad ass Mayor, you really are a sap." The blonde said.

Regina swallowed the lump in her throat and cleared her mind of the dirty, sexual thoughts about Emma that were running through it. "Well, Miss Swan, I can't help it when I'm around you. You've got me hooked." Regina silently chastised herself for the last word, but then internally smirked at the irony of it all. She was trying to get Emma _un-Hooked_ by admitting that she herself was hooked on the blonde.

Absurdity at its finest.

**XXX**

Regina woke up Saturday morning excited for their date. She got around quickly, and rushed downstairs to prepare Henry's breakfast, and await Kathryn's arrival. The blonde had agreed to babysit for Henry, and although Regina didn't like her all that well, the Queen trusted her to care for Henry. She knew that Henry had a way of weaseling his way into people's hearts and making them love him whether they wanted to or not.

She was so exhilaratingly happy that she was humming...Yes, Regina Mills, The Evil Queen herself, was _humming_. She finished the pancakes and called up the stairs to her son that had just gotten over the flu the day before. "Henry, darling! Breakfast is ready!" She yelled.

She received no response to the announcement and thought nothing of it. He was a young boy, and young boys didn't like getting up early, especially on weekends.

She set the table and got out the syrup and butter. She made his plate, and then went back to the staircase to yell for him once more. "Henry!" No response. Regina was getting irritated by that point. "HENRY DANIEL MILLS!" She yelled.

Finally, the door opened, and out popped Henry's head. "Do I _have_ to get up?" He pouted in a sleepy voice.

Regina rolled her eyes. "Yes, dear. You do indeed."

The ten-year-old sighed and walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. When he saw the pancakes, his face lit up, and he did a fist pump in excitement before hopping into his seat and shoveling a forkful of pancakes into his mouth.

Regina smiled contentedly at her son for a moment before cleaning up the dishes that she had dirtied. As she began to wash her mixing bowl, her happy silence was interrupted by a heart-shattering question. "What made you decide to be nice?" Her son asked.

Regina inhaled sharply before turning to her son who was staring at her with an inquisitive face. "W-what?"

Henry looked at her with curiosity and a hint of hurt on his face. "You stopped treating me like a prisoner, and you took me out of therapy. Is it because of Ma?"

Regina's heart started to flood with anxiety. "Henry, I-"

"Do you love her, or are you really the Evil Queen and trying to get Emma to fall in love with you so that she won't break the spell?"

Regina didn't want to lie. "I love her, Henry."

Henry nodded. "So you're trying to be a good person for her. Not for me."

Regina's heart shattered. "Henry! It's not like that at all! I love you very much. She just reminded me how to love properly, and now I want to treat you both like royalty because I haven't been treating you the way you deserved."

Henry frowned, "Royalty?"

Regina sighed. "Of course, doesn't everyone wish to be treated like royalty?"

Henry shrugged. "I guess." He said before shoving another bite of pancakes into his mouth. "You promise you really love me and aren't pretending for Ma?"

Regina's heart ached in her chest, and she willed herself not to cry. "Of course, I do Henry. I love you more than you could imagine. I'm so sorry that you couldn't see that before, but I promise I will never make you doubt it again."

Henry looked hesitant at first, but eventually, a smile emerged on his lips. "I love you too, Mom." He said as he took another bite of his breakfast.

Regina kissed his forehead. "I'm very thankful that you do, my prince," She said. The boy smiled with a mouthful of pancakes and Regina playfully tapped him on the shoulder with her dishtowel before returning to the dishes.

The doorbell rang, about ten minutes later. Henry had just gone back upstairs to play his XBOX, so Regina could act excited to leave, and she did so by rushing to the door passionately. She reached the door, and to her dismay, it wasn't Kathryn, it was Snow White. "Snow, what are you doing here?" She asked, and as soon as the pixie-haired woman looked at her incredulously, she realized her mistake and had to think of an excuse quickly. "Sorry, Henry keeps referring to you as Snow White, so I keep getting mixed up. What can I do for you, Miss Blanchard?" She asked.

The teacher was still very nervous around Regina, and although that brought back many memories, she hated it now because Regina and Snow White had mended their fences almost two years ago… well, in the original timeline, anyway.

Snow fidgeted with her hands and avoided eye contact with Regina. "H-hello Madame Mayor. Um. Kathryn couldn't make it… Sh-she sent me here to w-watch Henry for her. I-if that's okay with you?"

Regina nodded. She couldn't break the curse; only Emma could do that. So, there was no reason to get too worked up about Mary Margaret being close to Henry. There was also no need to be worried about the date because this date was going to go well, she would ask Emma to be her girlfriend exclusively. After a month or two, she'd show her the truth, and they would work on breaking the curse together... At least that was how she _hoped_ it all would go.

Mary Margaret was not a threat, so Regina nodded, smiled, and thanked the woman for helping her out. She showed her former step-daughter around; causing the woman to look exceptionally shocked. Once the Regina was sure that the younger brunette would have no issues settling in, she went upstairs to say goodbye to Henry and then left to pick up Emma.

**XXX**

Regina pulled up to the B& B and parked her Benz. She got out of the car, and grabbed a wicker basket filled with her ripest apples she had brought for Emma, (flowers were too unadventurous and orthodox) and the horse riding shoes, and walked into the building.

When she entered the establishment, Ruby was coming down the stairs, and Regina's green-eyed monster of jealousy kicked in. "What were you doing, Ruby? Sleeping with your customer?"

Ruby's eyes went wide, and she shook her head vehemently. "N-no, Madame Mayor, I was jus-"

Regina clicked her tongue and interrupted the woman's reply. "Typical harlot." She snarled.

The werewolf's face fell. "I was just bringing her new bed sheets." She whispered sadly.

Regina was instantly consumed with guilt. "Oh, dear. I apologize, Miss Lucas, I am just terribly nervous for this date, and I got helplessly jealous when I saw you come down from her room. I am genuinely sorry, and I hope you know that I most certainly do not think you to be a harlot.

The wolf seemed resistant towards the apology but nodded her head in acceptance. "I understand. It's normal to be nervous for a first date with a sexy blonde woman. It's not normal to be a complete bitch to innocent bystanders though." She said coolly before finishing her trek down the stairs.

Regina sighed and walked up the steps to Emma's room. She wasn't winning many brownie points with the townsfolk, and it was getting ridiculously hard to pretend that the fear and intimidation weren't hurting her anymore. She was ready to get this all over with so that she could finally, after decades of waiting, get her happy ending with Emma.

When she reached the top of the stairs, she found Emma's room door and braced herself. She took a deep breath and knocked twice.

The door quickly opened to reveal a half-dressed Emma Swan in a white tank top, and her pink underwear with a white mug of (presumably) hot-chocolate. Regina smiled at the Déjà Vu. But had to fight her arousal (just as before).

She couldn't lie and say she wasn't a bit jealous that Ruby had just gotten to see the blonde dressed like that.

"Regina? I thought you weren't supposed to be here for another hour?" The sheriff asked in confusion.

"I said 10 O'clock Emma," Regina said with a playful roll of her eyes.

Emma looked at the clock at the back of her room and arched her eyebrow. "It's only 9:30," she said.

Regina half- frowned. "Well, I know that, but I just couldn't wait any longer."

Emma smirked. "Couldn't stay away, huh?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Don't get a big head, Swan."

The sheriff's smirk widened. "I don't have a _head_. I'm a woman. But if I did I’m sure you’d be impressed.” She said with a mischievous grin.

"You really aren't capable of being anything but uncouth, are you?" The queen joked.

"Mm mm," Emma hummed as she took a sip from her mug. When she swallowed the drink, she looked at Regina with a fire in her eyes. "You have no idea what I'm capable of."

Regina gulped. Her arousal was painfully evident in her underwear. The blonde was right. Regina had no idea what she was capable of (in bed), but _holy_ _**hell**_ did she want to find out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I worked my butt off on this chapter, it was difficult to put all of my ideas in here and make them all flow together smoothly, but if you can't tell, next chapter will be their date! 
> 
> Please let me know what you think in the comments! :)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **There will be a lot of fluff and some smut in this chapter. I hope you enjoy! :)**

After Emma had put on a pair of leggings (Regina had insisted she not wear skinny jeans) and the boots that the brunette had bought her, the duo got into the Mayor's Mercedes.

They were on their way to their secret destination when a thought hit Emma's mind. "I never told you my shoe size. How did you know that I worse size eights?"

Panic rushed through the mayor for a second. The older woman hadn't thought that far ahead when she bought the nine-hundred dollar pair of professional Horseback Riding paddock boots. (She knew that Emma would refuse to wear a knee-length pair, so she spent the extra money to save the quarrel) "I asked Henry, and he snooped around for me when he stayed the night with you last weekend." She lied.

Emma shook her head with a chuckle. She had no idea why these ugly boots were so important to Regina, but she really _really_ liked the woman, so she would pretend that they were comfortable and that she didn't hate their style. She didn't really understand it, she'd never been with a woman before, but this raven-haired beauty clutched at her heart in a way that the blonde thought only the father of her son could ever succeed at doing… It wasn't love yer, but it could be if they continued to spend time together like this, she could already tell. "Clever, Mayor Mills. Very clever."

Regina's heart started dancing; not beating, not racing, no. Her heart was _dancing_ at Emma's adorable smile, and the way her dimples greeted the brunette… _God,_ she wanted to kiss that woman. "I hope you like the outdoors, Sheriff because we are going to be outside for a substantial portion of today." She announced as she turned down the street towards the stables. She remembered once that Emma had mentioned she had stayed at a foster home that had a stable filled with horses and how she used to ride them as a child until the foster mother passed away and the family sent Emma back into the system. Regina hoped that the blonde still enjoyed riding horses as much as Regina did.

"You're being very mysterious, mayor," Emma said with a flirtatious smile. "Are you taking me somewhere that you can have me all to yourself so you can have your way with me?" She joked.

Regina's lungs ran away as a blush crept up her neck and onto her face. She _had_ fantasized about that… many, many times. "I-." She sighed. "That is not something that I'd ever do to someone as special as you." She admitted honestly. "I'd like to think you thought more of me than that."

Emma's eyes bulged. "No! Gina, it was a joke!"

Regina's heart began to sing a melody when she heard the nickname. Knowing that she meant enough to Emma for the blonde to give her a nickname did pleasantly odd things to the Queen. She really did have it bad for the sheriff before her. "I know, darling. I was being sarcastic." She said with a kind smirk.

Emma let out an exasperated sigh. "Must you always make me feel like an asshole?" She joked (?)

Regina wasn't quite certain if the blonde genuinely felt attacked, so she tried very desperately to reroute the course of their date before things spiraled to a devastating end. "I'm sorry, darling. That is a fault of mine that I will most certainly work on. I just can't help myself sometimes. You honestly are an easy target." She said with a smirk.

Emma chuckled. "No need to apologize, just dial it down a little will ya? You've got Ruby and the rest of the town to target. I could use a break once in a while." She said with a wink.

The sheriff smiled fondly at the mayor; which sent shock waves to Regina's core. She really did need to see a psychiatrist. No one should affect the queen the way this woman had been able to do from the very beginning of the original timeline. "I suppose that's doable, darling." She said, then wondering if Emma had even noticed that change from 'dear' to 'darling' when it came to the blonde.

Emma smiled. "Good!" She laughed. "Now where on Earth are you taking me?"

Regina rolled her eyes. "Patience is most definitely not an attribute of yours is it, Darling."

Emma shrugged. "It used to be."

That got Regina's attention, but before she could inquire on the reasoning behind Emma's lack of patience, Emma asked her another question. "Why are you so infatuated with me, Regina? I really am nothing special."

Regina's heart wanted to scream at Emma _HOW CAN YOU NOT SEE THAT I HAVE BEEN IN LOVE WITH YOU FROM THE VERY BEGINNING!?_ "Because you not only are selfless, but you are loving and strong. You are adorable, and anyone would be lucky enough to have you by their side. As a friend, or as a lover. I understand if you can't see it. You've come from a terrible and unloving background, but if you let me. I will work as hard as I possibly can to show you that you are the most amazing persona alive."

Emma looked at her incredulously. "You've only known me for eight weeks."

Regina sighed as she pulled into the parking lot of the stables. Of course, the blonde wouldn't understand how her feelings could be so powerful. "With you, darling, it feels like we've known each other for the better part of a decade."

Emma smiled. "Yeah! I have that feeling too! I feel it with you and Mary Margaret. She's really amazing you know! I met her, and she had such long hair, but she wanted to cut it, and I convinced her that if it was what she wanted to do, then she should do it. I think it looks cute, don't you?"

Regina gritted her teeth together as she shifted her car into park. Emma hanging around Snow White was not a good thing. It wasn't a threat, but the closer Emma got to Mary-Margaret, the worse the outcome between her and Regina would be when she finally came clean to her. "Yes, it most certainly suits her well."

Emma smiled proudly. When she noticed that Regina was unbuckling she creased her brows in confusion. She didn't recognize this place in the least. "I've been living here for six weeks. I've been the sheriff here for six weeks. Why do I not recognize this place?"

Regina laughed. "Mainly because very few people knew about this place anyway, so there is no reason for you to waste gas to drive past in on your rounds. We are in Maine, Emma. Not many people are passionate about horses. Just Mr. Gold, myself, and the miners." She had almost slipped up and called the dwarves their real names, but she caught herself in the nick of time.

Emma nodded. "That makes sense I suppose." She said with a smile.

Regina tried her best to ignore her heart's foxtrot as she exited the car. Emma followed suit, and they walked side-by-side as they headed towards the stables.

Regina had this all planned out. She had made sure that the weather was supposed to be decent, that the horses were in top shape, and that Emma wouldn't have a difficult time getting the horse to obey her. Lunch was taken care of, and Emma didn't seem to be put off by the idea of riding horses again so Regina had faith that the date would go well. She had hoped that it'd go flawlessly, actually.

"How did you know I wouldn't be scared of horses or something?" Emma asked. Regina seemed to know almost every detail of her life, and it was becoming quite strange.

Regina's heart fearfully stuttered. "I- Are you?"

Emma chuckled and shook her head. "No, I'm just... I don't know. It's like you know my whole life story. It's weird, but endearing at the same time." She smiled.

Regina let out a nervous breath that she hadn't even realized she was holding. "Well, I must be able to read you better than I thought." She fibbed with a smile as they entered the stalls.

Regina watched Emma saddle up the horse and was amazed at how natural she was at doing so. She watched as she whispered softly to the stallion, and how quickly the horse allowed the stranger to groom him and check his hooves.

She then watched as the keeper of her heart made sure she had all the equipment she needed before looking at the Mayor. "Hey, Gina. How far are we going? I want to get the gear that would be the most comfortable for him."

Regina's heart was a goner. It was no longer in her chest, it ripped itself right out of her upper body and flew directly into the blonde's hands. How could someone with such a terrible upbringing be so tender to every other living thing on the planet? It amazed her.

"We're going to be going about five miles each way." She croaked out, chastising herself internally for letting her emotions break through to her voice.

If Emma had noticed the crack in Regina's voice, she chose to ignore it as she placed the stirrup and cinch on top of the saddle and used a bosal instead of a bit (The more humane choice which made Regina's heart fill with adoration). "Are you ready then, Miss Mills?"

Regina nodded as she mounted the horse. "Most certainly. Follow me, darling." She said with a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon on her face.

They rode together peacefully for about a quarter of a mile before Regina decided to break the silence with a solid first-date question. (Which she already knew the answer to) "What was your favorite bedtime story growing up?" She asked.

Emma laughed loudly as she slowed down her stallion to a walk instead of a gallop. "Hmmm... I used to say that it was the Ugly Duckling, but in reality, I never had a bedtime story read to me. Just read stories myself whenever I was lucky enough to find a foster home with books. But yeah, The Ugly Duckling."

Regina frowned, the answer she had expected _was_ The Ugly Duckling, but she hadn't expected the added on dialogue. It only increased her guilt over sending Emma into a life of abandonment, and abuse. She hurriedly tried to change the subject when Emma did it for her. "Who is your Celebrity Crush?" She asked with a cheeky smile.

Regina cackled. "Really, Miss Swan? You want to know that out of all things?"

Emma shrugged as her horse continued its slow pace beside Regina's own. "It's a solid question, Mayor. Plus, we have all day."

Regina smiled widely at the reminder. They did indeed, have all day. She averted her eyes as she answered the question because it was quite embarrassing. "Do you know of that series about the very arrogant diagnosis doctor and his three residents?"

Emma thought for a second before nodding. "House?"

Regina moved her head in the affirmative. "Yes, my Celebrity Crush is the actress that plays Allison Cameron."

Emma furrowed her brows. "Jennifer Morrison?"

Regina flushed as she nodded. "Yeah…"

Emma chuckled. "Really? Why?

Regina flushed. "B-because she's cute. Plus, she looks a lot like you."

Emma's brows corrugated once more. "Really? You think so? I don't see it at all. I think I look more like Gabriella Wilde than JMo."

Regina chuckled and shook her head. "No, I don't believe you do, Darling."

"Wait a second, how long has JMo been your celebrity crush if you have only known me for a little less than two months?"

Regina shrugged. "About seven weeks."

Emma wobbled her head. "You're crazy." She said with a smirk.

Regina laughed at the blonde's playful jab. "I'm only crazy for you, my dear."

Emma chuckled. "Sap."

Then, their comfortable silence turned into a relaxed conversation.

After about forty-five minutes of riding, Regina's legs were falling asleep, so the duo stopped their horses by a beautiful stream and let them rest while they sat at the creek side.

The water flowed in a valley stream, coursing smoothly and freely between the rocks. Very close by, not even fifty feet from the trail, there was a waterfall. Regina rested her head on Emma's shoulder and let the overwhelming feeling of joy and peace overflow her. She loved the sound and the power of pounding water as it hit the rocks and then fell ninety feet.

She opened her eyes and focused them on the waterfall. The white water cascaded down a series of rock as it trembled down the hillside. She then lifted her eyes to the blonde woman who was the warden of her heart. Emma had a kind of understated beauty, perhaps it was because she was just so unaware of how gorgeous she actually was, but just because she couldn't see it didn't mean that Regina was blinded to it.

Emma's pastel skin was entirely flawless. Her face didn't wear a single makeup product, and yet she was the most gorgeous woman in any realm. The blonde was all about simplicity, making people smile, and protecting the people she loved. That could very well be why her skin glowed so brilliantly, it was her inner beauty that lit her eyes and softened her features, so maybe her inner beauty lit up her outer beauty as well. Regina really did see Emma as a goddess… _her_ goddess, and the way that Emma looked as the sun shone down and highlighted the blonde woman's beauty just magnified that vision because Emma was the essence of sunlight. She was the goddess of the sun. Her golden hair draped down softly, curling at the ends. Her eyes, oh how Regina loved those beautiful evergreen eyes; the eyes that she could get lost in if only Emma would allow her to do so.

But, even with all of her beautiful outward features, she wasn't just beautiful because of her looks. She was beautiful deep down in her soul. She was beautiful for the way she thought, for the sparkle in her eyes when she talked about something she loved. Emma Swan was beautiful for her ability to make even the grumpiest person in Storybrooke (Leroy) smile. She was beautiful because her laugh was contagious, and her smile could warm even the coldest of hearts. (Regina should know, she used to own it). The savior was beautiful because when virtue and humbleness enlighten her charms, the luster of Emma Swan was brighter than all the stars in the night sky.

To Regina, there was no spectacle on Earth more appealing than that of waking up in the beautiful Emma Swan's arms from now, until the end of time.

Emma looked down at Regina and caught her staring at her. "Regina? Are you okay?" She asked worriedly.

Regina snapped out of her Emma-induced haze and smiled. "I'm wonderful." She said, emotion pouring through her words.

Emma smiled. "Let's play truth or dare." She said mischievously.

Regina cocked a brow. "We're in the middle of the woods, Dear. There are not many dares that we could do."

Emma chuckled. "You just have to get creative. Or are you just being a chicken?"

Regina never backed down from a challenge, and didn't take too kindly to being called a chicken so, against her better judgment, she agreed. "Okay, Miss Swan. You first, truth, or dare?"

Emma grinned. "Truth."

Regina nodded. "Have you ever been in love with a woman?"

Emma rolled her eyes. "Borrriiingggg. But no."

Regina chuckled. Good, they'd be each other's first an only. "Very mature response, Sheriff."

Emma laughed. She was fond of the playful side of Regina just as much as the tender and earnest side. "Thank you. I appreciate your compliment." She said with a grin. "Truth or Dare. Madame Mayor?"

Regina grinned. "Dare."

Emma was surprised. But had to admit it was a bit sexy when the mayor refused to be one upped. "I dare you to pick up that crawdad over there," Emma smirked.

Regina shrugged and stood up. She hated creepy crawlies, she may be the Evil Queen, but that didn't mean she had to be fond of all things disgusting. Luckily for her, she had riding gloves on, but before she reached the Crawdad Emma finished the rules of the dare.

"Without your gloves." She said with a knowing smirk.

Regina turned around fast enough that she was sure she had given herself whiplash. "Excuse me?" She asked with feigned anger. "I don't know if you remember correctly, but I am your boss. You don't want to risk losing your job do you?"

Emma shrugged. "Legally speaking you can't fire me. The only way you can technically _fire_ me is if you had a recall election. But it seems not many people in this town know that since you demoted Graham as soon as I came to town." Emma smiled brightly at the queen when she finished, knowing good and well that Regina couldn't deny it.

Regina growled. She _really_ hated it when Emma knew what she was talking about. "Can I just touch it?" She asked pleadingly.

Emma chuckled and nodded. "Fine, you big baby."

Regina smiled. That was the closest she'd ever gotten Emma to call her _baby_ , and although it wasn't quite what she wanted, she would take it and make it mean more than it actually did. She ambled over to the crayfish and gently bent down. She touched it with one finger, only for it to move suddenly and make Regina squeal and jump back. The former queen lost her footing and started to fall into the water, only to be caught by Emma.

The raven-haired mayor looked up to Emma who was smiling down at her in amusement. "Like I said, Madame Mayor. You're a baby."

"I'm your baby." The woman whispered to herself.

Emma looked at her with a look of confusion adorning her face. "What?"

Regina's eyes widened. "I said no you're a baby." She lied.

Emma smirked. "I can tell that you're lying, Gina. I won't push it, but I know that's not what you just said." 

Emma stood Regina up again but didn't let her go as they gazed into each other's eyes. She was mesmerized by the mayor's beautiful brown eyes. Her eyes were a hickory almost as rich as the color of hot chocolate on a cold winter night that wraps you up like a bedspread; engulfs you in its warmth and makes you feel at home. Those dark cinnamon swirls seized the depth of heaviness of a million untold stories; stories that the blonde wanted to listen to every detail of. The beautiful windows to heaven that were Regina's eyes consisted of raw emotion, and if you observed carefully, they would reveal to you the exact thought that crossed the marvels of her beautiful mind.

Their faces were so close together that it would only take a millimeter to close the gap. Regina could feel Emma's breath on her lips, and she couldn't stop staring at those luscious lips that she'd become addicted to. She gulped. "Truth or Dare?" She asked, pleading to any deity that actually existed that Emma would choose the latter.

"Dare," Emma said huskily.

Regina thanked her lucky stars. This was her shot. And although she was terrified of rejection, she wasn't going to let this opportunity slip past her. She took a shaky and anxiety filled breath before speaking. "I dare you to kiss me."

And so, she did.

The blonde leaned in tantalizingly slow. There was a moment, between the times she glanced into Regina's eyes for confirmation, where the world stopped for them both for the briefest second. It was filled with anticipation.

Then, their lips met, and the passion was so intense that it hung in the air as Emma pulled the mayor closer. Their mouths continued to dance together tenderly, until, to Regina's delight, Emma deepened the kiss.

Unexpectedly, Emma's hand drifted to her hip. It settled there and pulled Regina closer. The brunette inhaled sharply in pure and utter pleasure. Regina felt Emma's warm chest and her taut abs that were chiseled flawlessly. _Must she be so perfect?_ The world drifted away from them both as they got lost in each other. The kiss was impeccable, and when they pulled away to catch their breath, Regina realized that this could be their beginning.

She looked into the beautiful green orbs and stared into them intensely.

"Emma Swan, will you go steady with me?"

Emma furrowed her brows. "Huh?"

Regina sighed exasperatedly at the woman she loved, but couldn't help but smile at her adorableness. "Emma Swan, will you please do me the honor of being my girlfriend? _Exclusively?_ "

Realization dawned on the blonde's face before a smile broke it in half. "Absolutely!"

Regina smiled and wrapped Emma up in her arms before slamming their lips together again in a bruising kiss.

_Finally._

**XXX**

The weeks following their newly instated relationship were full of date nights, family dinners with the lovebirds and their son, and make out sessions. They also had been slowly moving Emma into her new house and setting everything up. The entire town knew about the Sheriff and the Mayor's relationship, and they hadn't gotten a single ill word about it.

Regina was the happiest she had ever been, and Emma seemed to be just as jubilated. Their smiles never left their faces, even when they were carrying the blonde's brand-new couch into Emma's ranch-style home.

That was where they were currently, Regina and Emma had finally finished the unpacking, and they were sitting on the couch talking. "I'm so glad that this is over with," Emma said with a chuckle.

Regina concurred with a nod. "I second that." She said breathlessly. "I'm also thankful that Henry is at a sleepover this weekend," She said. She was telling the truth too, because while Henry was away, Regina planned to come clean to her girlfriend. The mayor had come to terms with the fact that she was going to have to tell Emma the truth, that she was, in fact, The Evil Queen that was responsible for Emma's parents abandoning her. She was terrified about what the future held, especially now that Emma had been hanging out with Mary-Margaret whenever Regina had to stay late at the office, and Henry was either at a friend's or already asleep. She knew that it would be difficult to get past, but according to Mother Superior, telling Emma the truth before the curse broke would help her chances of winning Emma's heart.

After a few minutes of silence, "Emma, I have something I want to talk to you about." Regina said.

Emma's smile turned into a heartbroken frown. "It's fine… You don't have to say it. I get it."

Regina's brows creased in confusion. "Y-you do?"

Emma nodded, her face showing utter devastation, which broke Regina's heart. "Yeah. Can you just... Can you still let me see Henry?"

The mayor's heart was pounding. Emma wasn't taking Henry away. She was asking to still be _allowed visitation_. Something wasn't right; it sounded like Emma was breaking up with her, but yet, her reaction made no sense. Emma apparently wasn't talking about the same thing. "Emma, what in the world are you talking about?"

"Look, Regina. I know that you raised him, but I still love him. I should be able to see him at least every other weekend!"

"Of course you can see him, Emma! Whenever you want." Regina insisted. "Why on Earth would I stop you from seeing _our_ son?"

Emma froze with a shocked expression on her face. "You aren't breaking up with me, are you?" She asked giddily as a smile slowly crawled onto her lips.

Regina shook her head. "No! Oh, Darling, no. I could _never_ leave you!"

Emma smiled through what Regina hoped were happy tears before she pounced on Regina, causing Regina to rest her head on the armrest of the couch, and as she laid on top of the brunette woman, she smashed their lips together.

All thoughts of admitting she was the Evil Queen went out the window as she began to kiss Emma back just as frantically as the blonde was kissing her.

Emma sat up and looked into the other woman's eyes. "Give me control, Regina."

Regina's arousal was pooling into her panties by that point, and she was sure they were ruined. Letting Emma have control over her body was something she hadn't been able to get out of her fantasies for _years,_ so all she could do was nod her consent.

Emma's eyes glazed over, but she shook her head no. "Regina, I need to hear you say that I have control, or else I will be too nervous to mess this up. Give me clear consent, beautiful."

Regina's heart swelled with adoration at her girlfriend's humble plea as her core soaked through her underwear. "Yes! Yes, Emma. Take me. Do whatever you need to do."

Emma smiled and leaned down to connect their lips once more before she stripped the woman of her pants. "Your legs are fucking gorgeous." She said.

Regina's heart jumped with glee, but she stayed silent. She'd watched Fifty Shades of Grey, and she read enough raunchy novels to know that if she made a sound while she was being dominated ( _HOLY SHIT I'M BEING DOMINATED BY EMMA! I'M FINALLY GOING TO GET TO FEEL HER.)_ that she might not get what she wanted, and what she wanted more than anything right then was to feel Emma and hopefully touch her back.

"You can talk, you know. I don't want to fuck you. I want to..." The blonde hesitated, and Regina could tell that Emma was too afraid to say it first, too scared to admit she wanted to make love and _god_ did Regina want to hear Emma say that. So, she said the one thing she had been dying to say for the past seven years.

"Please, Emma... I love you more than anything. I'm in love with you." She said.

Emma's eyes sparkled, and her smile grew larger than Regina had ever seen it. "I love you too, Regina. I love you, and now I want to make love _to_ you."

Regina nodded fervently. "PLEASE. I can't wait any longer."

Emma chuckled at that, and before Regina could say another word, their lips were reconnected. Regina's mouth opened, and their tongues encircled in a wild and long French kiss. Soon, Emma broke the kiss and stripped Regina completely naked. Regina wanted to protest and say that she shouldn't be the only one naked right now, but she didn't want to push her luck.

Emma picked up the queen and carried her to her brand-new bed, plopping her on it before crawling up Regina's naked body and connecting their lips in another fiery kiss. Emma moved her hands to her lover's breasts and massaged her hard nipples.

Regina moaned. The feeling of her nipples alone was enough to make her cum on the spot. She wanted more. She wanted _everything_ Emma could offer her.

A short moment later, Emma broke their kiss just to start kissing down Regina's body. Her lips caressed her neck, her breasts, and stopped at her nipples. Regina was groaning and moaning embarrassingly loud, but she didn't care, she hadn't been touched this way in so agonizingly long that she probably wouldn't last long at all. So as she felt Emma's tongue encircling her navel and then the blonde's lips finally kiss her pubic hair, she had already had a small orgasm. She moaned and groaned as her core clenched at nothing.

Emma stopped touching her and let the brunette ride out her very insignificant orgasm. When Regina had ridden it out, the blonde went back to work. "Do I really have that strong of an effect on you, my love?"

Regina nodded. "Yes, baby. Yes, you do."

Emma smiled. "I want you to close your eyes, and just feel me kissing and licking every inch of your sexy body."

Regina groaned as she squeezed her thighs together to try to calm down her aching and throbbing clit. She shivered with lust at her girlfriend's softly spoken command. Soon, Regina felt Emma's tongue and lips all over her body, and she was writhing beneath the blonde in pleasure. Emma's hands were all over her, and so were her lips. Regina's hands were entangled in Emma's hair, and she never wanted to let go.

Soon, Emma's hand reached Regina's soaked core, and one finger slid through her wet folds, causing Regina to moan and her heart to speed at a pace it hadn't ever reached before. After a few moments of teasing, Emma slid down Regina's widespread legs. Regina moaned at that too, the feeling of Emma sliding down her bare body was intoxicatingly marvelous.

When Emma knelt at the foot of the bed, she yanked Regina's pussy closer to her before pushing one finger into her lover and fucking her slowly. She worked another finger, in a few seconds later, and before Regina knew it Emma's entire hand was in her cunt, and she was stretched painfully wide. It hurt, but it was _**precisely**_ what Regina wanted. Emma stopped going slowly, she started pumping in and out of Regina at speeds that caused searing pain in Regina's pussy, but soon, after she got semi-used to being stretched further than she had ever been before, pleasure started kicking in.

Soon, Regina moaned as a blinding orgasm shot through her, and she howled louder than she had all night. It was the best, and most powerful orgasm she had ever received. Of course, it was though; it had been Emma who gave it to her.

When she came down, she expected Emma to pull out, but instead, the woman pushed deeper into the brunette. Now the woman was wrist-deep inside of the queen, it hurt, to say the least, but Regina knew that with pain came pleasure.

Regina groaned at the pain, causing Emma to stop. "Are you okay, baby?" Emma asked in concern. Regina nodded. "D-don't stop. Please don't ever stop."

Emma smiled lovingly, "If it gets to be too much, tell me and I'll stop immediately. Okay" She asked, she waited for Regina to confirm that she would speak up if it got to be too much and then the blonde resumed pumping in and out faster than she had been, but much to Regina's approval Emma bent down and began to lick her clit in rhythm with the strokes.

Finally, Regina had an orgasm that caused her to scream out and clench around Emma's fist. "EMMA! OH, FUCK! EMMA!"

Emma brought her down from her orgasm slowly, and when she was sure the last remnants of climax had passed through Regina, she pulled out and went to the bathroom to wash her hand.

She returned to the bed where an exhausted Regina lay and ushered the smaller woman to cuddle with her.

"That was amazing," Regina said as she tried to catch her breath, "Don't you dare think for a moment that I'm not going to return the favor when I catch my breath."

Emma smiled. "Are you sure you have that in you?" She asked.

Regina nodded. "You have no idea."

About ten minutes later, Regina was on top of Emma, who was also naked now. She was kissing her passionately as she massaged her hardened tits. Regina then sat up and gazed at Emma's curvaceous and muscular body. She eyed her firm breasts down to the top of her hairless core between her thighs.

Emma reached up with her left hand and began to knead Regina's right breast. "I love these breasts," Emma whispered. "You don't have to do this if you're not ready." The blonde reassured her. "I don't want you to do something you aren't sure about."

Regina shook her head. "Hell no. I've been wanting to do this since the day I laid eyes on you." She said as she began to slide down the blonde woman. She spread her girlfriend's legs open wider and bent down to get ready to take her first taste of the woman she loved, but before she did so, she spoke. "You are even more beautiful than I could have ever imagined." She said before she took her first swipe of Emma's core.

They both moaned when her tongue touched Emma's labia. Regina moaned because the sheriff tasted like heaven, and Emma wailed because she was already tauntingly close to climax.

Within a minute, Emma was coming all over Regina's face, and the Mayor was lapping it up greedily.

**XXX**

The rest of the weekend was spent cuddling up with each other, talking about their childhoods, and watching ridiculous romcoms together. Regina had reassured herself that she would tell Emma the truth on their next date night. She would, _really_.

But as she sat at her office desk filling out paperwork about a new parking lot by the bank, the ground began to shake relentlessly. She immediately recognized the earthquake, and Regina's heart sank.

_**Emma was at the mines**._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I hope you enjoyed!**


	9. Chapter 9

Regina felt terror course through her entire being. She had thought for certain that the sinkhole wouldn't happen in this timeline, and now that it had, Emma's life was in mortal danger. The blonde had been having lunch with Regina when she got a call about a trespasser in the mines and had left early to check it out. Regina’s heart was pounding rapidly as she sped her car through town towards the mines. As she got there, she saw a crowd of people standing around the massive hole in the ground, and her heart exploded inside of her chest as nausea took over her stomach.

_Please, Emma, be safe._

The reformed Queen got out of her Mercedes and rushed towards the crowd only to see somber faces all around. Regina's heart was pounding, her breathing was labored, her stomach had twisted painfully in knots, her throat was closing up, and her sight was beginning to blur, but as soon as she looked down she saw her worst nightmare… _Emma_.

Regina collapsed to the ground as she screamed at the unconscious woman. "EMMA! Oh, _god_ SOMEBODY HELP HER!" She cried as she tried her damnedest to stand. A gentle hand was placed on her shoulder, causing Regina to look into the familiar face of her ex-step-daughter.

"There's a rescue team on their way now. They're going to get her out from under the boulder. One of the miners went down there and apparently she is on top of some glass casket or something. I'm not quite sure what he's talking about, but it seemed to them that there are shards of it inside of her back. She's going to be taken to the hospital. I'm sure that with you being her girlfriend and all they'll allow you to ride with her." Mary-Margaret said tearfully.

Regina hated that the pixie-haired brunette was so upset about this, but in all honesty, Regina just couldn't care at the moment. The love of her life was potentially dead inside a gigantic hole in the ground, and there was absolutely nothing that she could do at the moment to help her. Her magic was all but gone, barely enough left to create a magical turnover and Emma was on top of her own mother's shattered casket which made no sense because the tunnel she had hidden it in was under the clock tower, not in the mines. Regina was confused but more than anything she was devastated. There was absolutely no way Regina could assist her lover. She was utterly helpless. If Emma was dead, Regina would just end it all because she was not able to live without the beautiful blonde Sheriff in her life.

She would beg and plead with the blue fairy to send her back into the original timeline, and try her hardest to accept that Emma was never to be hers. She would play the dutiful best friend and co-parent. That's all she was to Emma in the first place. She had no idea why she had to be selfish and wish for something more. She'd never be good enough for the savior.

In reality, Regina would always be the Evil Queen and their son's least favorite mother. The Mayor gulped back her tears and stood up. "Emma, I swear that I will fix this." She whispered.

Regina turned to one of the miners that had a harness on and looked at him with steely eyes. "Give me that harness." She demanded coolly.

The man hurried out of his straps and then handed the equipment to Regina. Regina put the straps on around her shoulders and fastened them between her thighs. She looked over to the man that was operating the pulley and nodded to him.

_If I can't save her at the moment the least I can do is hold her until the team can extract her._

The man furrowed his brows, signaling he didn't understand the Mayor's intent, so with a very frustrated sigh the former Queen expounded "Lower me down, so I can wait with her." She said calmly.

The unfamiliar miner shook his head. "Sorry, Madame Mayor but it's way too dangerous to do that."

Regina felt rage burst forth like a floodgate. "Are you seriously that stupid? I genuinely hope that you are just hard of hearing, because I order my town's employee to do something, and they do it. That is how politics work. I am the Mayor; you are the lowly town worker. I sign your paychecks; you do the work. You either lower me down so that I can stay by my girlfriend's side, or you lose your job. Understood? Now, Lower. Me. Down.

The man gulped nervously as he nodded and began to slowly drop Regina down into the crater. Her eyes never left the blonde's motionless body, and with every inch that she was lowered, her heart became heavier. When Regina reached the halfway mark, she noticed how incredibly bloody the ground around Emma was, and Regina couldn't handle the pain as she let out a strangled sob. _This entirely my fault_ _I should have known. I should have paid more attention._

She looked up; she couldn't bear to look at the bloody mess that Emma's broken body was laying in. The Mayor's vision was still blurry, but she still recognized the silhouette of the man she had dreaded to see.

_August._

The man stood there, leaning over the edge of the sinkhole in his leather jacket with a concerned expression on his face. He nodded imperceptibly to himself before he took out his phone and typed. Then, within the blink of an eye, the biker was gone.

Regina didn't even want to think about what that meant. She cleared her mind of the fears of what was to come with Mr. Booth and immediately focused on getting to her girlfriend as soon as her feet touched the bottom of the pit.

She unclipped the harness from the rope and was instantly at Emma's side. Regina saw the glass shards all around the woman, but to Regina's (sort of) delight there was only one shard in the blonde's shoulder. Regina fought the urge to pull it out; she wasn't sure if it would cause more damage, so she waited for the rescue team to arrive.

As she waited, Regina put Emma's head onto her lap and examined the half of the Sheriff's body that wasn't buried under the mound of rubble that had fallen along with her. The Queen didn't try to stop her sobs of devastation as she took in the arm that was bent in an unnatural direction, the enormous and bloody gash on the side of the blonde's head, and the abysmal bruises on the part of her stomach that was showing. But what broke Regina, even more, was the sound of Emma's breathing. It was slow, labored, and sounded like no matter how deep the blonde inhaled, her lungs couldn't acquire enough oxygen. It was terrifying, and gut-wrenching at the same time.

She stroked the golden locks that rested on her lap as she cried. "Don't leave me, baby. Please. I can't live in a world that doesn't have you in it." She whispered. "I can't lose you. Not when I just finally got a chance to be with you." She was sobbing because she had finally gotten everything she had ever wanted and now it was about to all be taken away. She needed Emma; she loved Emma, hell, she'd take the blonde's place if she could… The Queen just needed to know that the Savior would survive. She could survive if Emma chose to never be with her again, it'd be miserable, and she'd never be happy, but at least on occasion, Regina would be able to see the keeper of her heart, maybe even have a friendship with her again… but never being able to see those shiny emerald green eyes that she'd fallen for almost a decade ago? No… there was no way she could survive that.

She waited with the Sheriff until the rescue team came and dug Emma out of the pile of rubble. When they undug the young Sheriff and pulled the petite blonde's body out of the dirt, Regina's heart shattered. Emma's right leg had a bone sticking out of its thigh, and her right leg was a bloodied mess.

She ached to take all the Savior's pain away. She longed to fix the situation, to take back her wish and live a life where Emma never got hurt so brutally. _I wish that none of this had ever happened._ She said to herself as she watched the love of her life's motionless body get put onto a gurney. She followed the men who were transporting Emma until all of a sudden, time stood still. The raven haired Queen held her breath as hope began to fill her every pore. Maybe Reul could fix all of this and make it all go away.

She turned around to look for the fairy but was surprised to see Rumpelstiltskin instead. "Hello, Dearie." The man said with a wicked grin. "Getting ready to take a stroll with our lovely blonde Savior are we?" He asked with one of his evil laughs.

Everything mysterious about the situation clicked into place.

_Rumple._

Fury grew within Regina so much more intensely that nothing she could ever imagine could calm her. Her temper was like TNT, once the sparks started to ignite there was very little time to cover. She had always been this way to everyone except Henry, and, more recently, Emma. Her cold fury burned with dangerous intensity. She knew that Gold never worried about her wrath, he had magic that she currently didn't have much of, but if it meant revenge for Emma's injuries, for Emma's current life-or-death situation, Regina would be willing to give it everything she had. " _ **YOU**_ did this! "She snarled ferociously as she took steps toward the man. "How the hell are you not under the curse? Everyone is under the curse but me!"

The man grinned devilishly. "I'm the dark one, Dearie. You really think that I'd be effected by a fairy's poorly constructed spell? I think not, but because of your selfishness, I've just lost Belle again. I have no reason to be on your team anymore, Your Majesty, and I intend to be my authentic self until you fail at your task and I get my Belle back. This won't last forever, so I decided to take matters into my own hands to speed this little thing along. Living without my wife for the past three months has been a dreadful experience that I'd prefer not to live with anymore." He said evilly.

Regina frowned. She understood the understood how it felt to be forced to live without the one you loved, but she still didn't particularly like the fact that Emma had to suffer because of the Dark One's impatience. "You think that just because Belle doesn't remember who you are right now, you have the right to attempt to kill Emma? If she dies doesn't this spell stick? WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"

For being the third most powerful being in all of the realms, he was incredibly stupid.

"This won't stick, Dearie. She'd never choose you." He said. "Not with my son's early return and your inevitable fate of revealing your true identity."

Regina's heart dropped. Neal was returning. This was bad. This was very, very bad. Just before she could say anything, Blue appeared behind Rumple and froze him with her magic.

"Sorry," She said with an apologetic smile. "Gold thought that he understood the way this whole thing works, but now he won't even realize that he's in the middle of a spell besides your curse, of course." She said.

Regina nodded. "It's okay. I understand, but can you fix Emma's injuries? Or at least revert back time so that I can stop her from going to the mines?"

Blue's face fell as she shook her head; regret filled her eyes as she spoke. "At this point Regina, it's too far past the event. If you had wished me here within twenty minutes of the accident, sure I could. But it's been over fifty minutes since everything happened, I can't help you now."

Regina's heart exploded, she sank to her knees, taking in the words that her brain refused to comprehend. She cried tears of absolute devastation as only one thought came to her mind;

Her fate was sealed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * * *
> 
> **I apologize that this took so long to write, and I also apologize if this story is starting to lose its edge. I've been very discouraged lately, I do hope you enjoyed.**
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> **Have suggestions? Remarks? Love it? Hate it? Let me know in the comments!**


	10. Chapter 10

Regina Mills was many things. She was a mayor, a villain, a queen, and to some, a hero; but, before all else, she was a girlfriend and mother. So instead of going to her scheduled town meetings, the brunette decided to ride in the ambulance to the hospital with Emma to make sure that the blonde wasn't alone, and had Mary Margaret pick Henry up from his after-school study group. There was no way in hell she could keep this from him. Not when she wasn't quite sure what the outcome of her injuries would be.

So, as she sat in the crowded ambulance with the EMTs working chaotically around the body of the love of her life, Regina sat and prayed to gods that she was –until this moment- sure were just fabrications. She prayed and hoped that somehow, some way, Emma Swan would survive and prevail.

She continued to silently pray as she watched and listened to the paramedics call out all the visible injuries to Emma's body.

"She has a nine-inch laceration to her thigh directly on her right thigh. There are signs of internal bleeding through her entire abdomen." The female EMT said as she inserted a syringe into Emma's right arm. "The patient also has a broken right femur, a broken left humerus, radius, and most likely a fractured ulna as well."

"I've discovered a severe puncture wound to her left shoulder that is bleeding excessively. Her right scapula still has a shard of glass through it, and we cannot remove it without making sure it isn't hitting anything important. She has a right pneumothorax and a possible left lung contusion. We need more O-neg." The male paramedic (whom Regina was sure used to be a guard at her castle) said.

The woman's eyes went wide. "She's losing too much blood. We need to get her there faster!" She yelled at the driver.

"Oh shit! Did you notice the head lac?" The male said to his partner as he pointed to the gash on Emma's forehead.

The woman sighed. "How the hell are we supposed to do anything without even knowing what's going on up there!? She's showing signs of a hematoma, but it could be a concussion. How far are we? She needs a doctor now."

Regina was panicking. Everything they were listing off sounded horrid. Then she heard the woman whisper under her breath to the man. "There's no way in hell she is going to make it out alive."

The man shook his head and whispered back. "It's a miracle she's even alive right now."

Regina wanted to destroy them for giving up hope on her girlfriend so quickly, but she held herself back because they were currently the only things keeping Emma alive. "Do you HAVE to announce everything that is going wrong with my love in front of me?" She asked in a broken and tremulous voice. "Can't you wait and do that in front of the doctors? I really can't handle this." She said as she fought back her tears of utter despondency.

The paramedics looked at each other with crestfallen faces as they continued to work on their patient. Instead of yelling back and forth to each other from that point forward, they whispered all of the injuries that Emma had sustained.

 

**XXX**

 

Soon, the ambulance reached the hospital where Emma was swiftly taken inside. Regina sat down in the waiting room, wishing that she had been able to go back with Emma, but no matter how hard she fought, the Hospital Security still outnumbered her, and they had been easily able to overpower her flailing and screaming.

So, there she sat, in the waiting room waiting for the results of her lover's injuries. Hoping and praying that she could somehow hold the love of her life in her arms again, and see her gorgeous smile, and hear the beautiful melodic sound of her voice. She cried tears of utter despair as she awaited the arrival of their son, and the inevitable blame he would bestow upon her.

Thirty minutes later, her precious baby boy came running into the waiting room with tear streaks down his rosy cheeks. Her burst through the doors and ran straight into his adoptive mother's arms. (something she hadn't been expecting. She had expected him to entirely blame her.) "Mom! I-is Ma going t-to be alright?" He asked through tears.

Her heart clenched at the thought of the sheer devastation that would sprout on his face if she told him the truth. The idea of that expression made her contemplate telling him a half-truth, or even a flat-out lie and tell him that there was no need to worry about his birth mother, but she realized that lying always had much more severe consequences than the upfront truth, and decided against lying.

She pulled back from her firm embrace and fixed him with a loving, yet solemn expression. "Henry, I know that this is a difficult time for you, it is probably the worst feeling I've ever encountered myself, but you've got to be strong, okay? Emma needs us all to be strong for her. She is in a serious condition right now, and we don't know what will happen, but what we do know is that at this moment, she needs as much strength as possible, so we need to be strong for her like she always is for us, okay?"

Henry smiled a half smile through his tears and nodded. "C-can I see her?" He asked.

Regina frowned. "I wish we both could, Henry. But she's been back there with the doctors for about a half hour now, and we have no idea what's going to happen yet."

Henry's face tightened, and the mayor could tell that her little boy was trying so very hard not to cry in an attempt to be strong for his birth mother. Regina's heart clenched once more, and she engulfed her son in a tight enfoldment. "Oh, my sweet boy, don't you dare start crying. If you start crying, I will start, and we will both look a mess." She said with a sad chuckle as tears began to brim behind her eyelids.

Henry started shaking in her arms, which was a tell-tale sign that he had begun to sob. Regina let her resolve to begin to crumble as she allowed the tears to fall. "It's okay, baby boy. We will get through this." She susurrated into her son's ear.

She was lying through her teeth though, because she knew quite certainly that if Emma died, Regina's soul would die right along with her, along with her heart, because, although Henry held Regina's heart, Emma _was_ Regina's heart. Without Henry, Regina would be devastated, but without Emma, she would be non-existent. They both had so much of her love that losing either of them would destroy her but in two completely different ways. She needed Emma to survive this because if she didn't Henry would lose both of his moms in a single swoop, and that wasn't what he deserved. Although, from what she was told, his father would be arriving shortly and Regina knew that he would take good care of him if the necessity arose. She would prevent that obligation at all costs though because she hated Neal with a burning passion. He may be a good man, but he didn't deserve Emma, and he definitely didn't deserve to be called Henry's father.

She cleared her throat and pulled away from her son to look him in the eyes one more time. "Henry, I am going to stay here until Emma is better. You can come and visit after school for a little while, okay? But right now I think it's best if you stay with Miss Blanchard for now if that is okay with her." She finished by looking pleadingly into Mary-Margaret's eyes.

The teacher nodded her head empathetically. "Yes. Absolutely. Whatever you two need."

Henry shook his head. "NO! I'm not leaving Ma alone!"

Regina sighed and nodded. She had known that convincing Henry to leave Emma's side would prove to be excessively challenging. It had only been a short amount of time, not even four months, yet Henry and Emma's bond was so much stronger than it had been at this point in the previous version of this reality. "Henry, please. I love you so very much, and Emma does too. Do you think she would want you sitting here day in and day out waiting for her to get better? Do you think she'd be okay with you missing that much school?"

Henry shook his head. "No, but I don't want to abandon her like her parents did." He said sadly.

Regina's heart constricted at the young boy's admittance. "Oh, darling. As long as you visit her once a day, there is no way she could ever think that you abandoned her. As soon as something changes for the better, I will dial your number, and you can rush down here, okay?" She asked, secretly pleading for her son just to accept this and go. Hospitals were absolutely no place for a child of his age. Particularly if they weren't the patient.

Henry nodded sadly before crushing Regina's waist into another hug. "Please don't let them let her die, mom. She's the final piece of our family."

Regina's heart broke at the plea of her son. No matter how hard she tried, there was no way that she could ever prevent the doctors from failing to save her love. Instead of accepting the request from her son, and agreeing to do the impossible, she merely pulled him into her body tightly and kissed the top of his head before breaking the hug and saying. "I love you, Henry. Be good for Mary Margaret. I will see you tomorrow right after school, alright?"

The brunette ten-year-old nodded before hugging his mother tightly one last time and turning away. Once he was at the exit doors with his teacher, he turned his head over his shoulder and said. "Oh, mom!"

Regina turned to look at her little boy. "Yes, darling?" She asked worriedly.

The boy smiled slightly and said. "I love you, too."

Regina smiled softly at her son, her heart repairing just a fraction of itself before Henry left, and it ripped itself apart once more.

 

**XXX**

 

Regina had been sitting in the waiting room for four agonizingly long hours before she finally saw Dr. Whale coming out of the corridors. He looked somber and exhausted; his scrubs were a bloody mess, and his posture was that of an Igor.

Her heart's broken pieces shattered even more before they sank to her stomach, and sliced her skin like razor blades dipped in acid. "How is she?” She inquired as nausea and panic began to set in. “Please, don't tell me that she-…" Her breath hitched in heartbreaking turmoil, and her mouth refused to say the word. _Please, don't tell me that she died._ She pleaded inside of her mind.

The man shook his head with a puckered brow and a grim frown. "We've done everything we could, but there were substantial injuries. She had a subdural Hematoma that caused a huge problem, and although we fixed it, her brain waves are still low and irregular. Her arm and leg both require surgery, but we can't do those until her brain stabilizes, and because that might take days, or even weeks, if it does at all, that means that she could quite possibly lose both of them. Her shoulder will need extensive physical therapy, and if she doesn't receive that soon, she may lose mobility in that one as well. She isn't breathing on her own, and even with the respirator, she isn't getting a lot of oxygen because she has a collapsed lung and the other one is severely bruised. On top of that, she died on the table three times, which made us have to close her up early without fixing all of the internal bleedings. It isn't severe at the moment, but if her vitals don't stabilize within twelve hours, well, then I'm afraid there isn't much hope at all."

Regina couldn't even bear to listen to him anymore. Her Emma… Her beautiful, bright, kind, and funny little swan was barely alive, and there was nothing anyone could do but hope. "A-and if she does stabilize enough to finish the surgery?"

The man sighed and shook his head. "I'd say it would boost her chances of survival from five percent to around twelve to fifteen percent."

Regina's heart ached at just how low Emma's chances of survival were, but she nodded and bit back her sobs. "C-can I see her?" She asked tentatively.

The man smiled sadly, the look in his eyes was of pure pity, and Regina had to fight the urge to set him on fire. Her magic had a purpose now… "Sure, Madame Mayor, I don't see why not. Being alone wouldn't be what she would want, I don't think."

Regina gritted her teeth. She hated how the entire town assumed what Emma would want, almost all the time..even in her original timeline they had done so. Nevertheless, the reformed queen followed the white-blonde haired man to the back of the hospital and to the Intensive Care Unit, where Emma lay on a bed, pale, bruised, small, and connected to dozens of tubes and gadgets.

Regina let out a whimper that was immediately followed with tears as she ran to the love of her life's bed. She pulled up the hard steel chair towards the bed and plopped down into it before grabbing Emma's pale, limp hand with her own olive toned one.

She watched as the Doctor checked over the sheriff's vitals, and frowned in disappointment, before turning towards the door and leaving.

Once the door latched shut behind him, Regina spoke softly to Emma, as her voice refused to work above a whisper due to her never-ending sobs. "Emma Swan, you can't leave us. Do you hear me? We all need you. _I_ need you to live. Can you do that for me, please? Can you just… _live_? I can't do this without you anymore. I can't _exist_ without you. You're the absolute most beautiful thing that I hold in my heart, and I can't afford to lose you. I need you to know that when you do wake up, and you can't walk, I will hold you up so that you can stand, and I'll be there by your side through all of your therapy sessions and surgeries. I will wipe your tears away when you cry because the pain is too much, or if you feel like a lesser person because of the casts. I will fight for you if you give up on yourself because you feel like the therapy isn't working. But most importantly, I will love you through all of this and eternally after. You are **_not_**  alone, baby. So you can wake up now” She stopped talking, in hopes that her voice’s tremble would stop, but also that she had said enough to coax her True Love back to consciousness.

She sat and watched as Emma's brain waves made no change at all. She let out a shaky breath and sat back in her chair. Her heart was breaking slowly with each glance she took at Emma's lifeless body. This wasn't supposed to be how this all happened. If she hadn't been so selfish, Emma would be contentedly married to Killian, and there would be no Emma Swan that was unconscious in the hospital with the threat of losing practically all mobility in her extremities.

She fought back her tears as she spoke again. "Emma, baby, please. You need to wake up for me, pretty woman. You need to wake up for me so that I can tell you the truth. SO that I can come clean and tell you that I am the Evil Queen and that I am so fucking sorry for everything that I have ever done to you and your family. You need to break through this coma and come back to me so that we can raise our son together, and watch him grow up to be the incredible young man that I know he's going to be. You need to wake up so that I can tell you this, and beg for forgiveness for lying for so long. You need to wake up, my love. **Please** , _I love you, Emma Swan_. I need you to wake up for me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I hope you enjoyed! What do you think Emma's fate will be?! ******


	11. Chapter 11

Two days had gone and come, and Regina was still sitting dutifully at the side of her True Love, hoping that soon, there would be an improvement in Emma's state.

There hadn't been any changes at all, and although that was discouraging, Regina somehow still managed to have hope.

As she sat there, staring at the lifeless body of the woman who she would never fall out of love with, she decided to try to coax Emma back to consciousness with her words once more. "Henry has been getting in trouble at school, Miss Swan." Regina lied. "You need to wake up so you can tell that son of ours to behave. He listens better when it's you who is being stern." The mayor finished her tall tale and stared at her lover, hope filling her heart that their son would be enough motivation to overcome her coma.

There was no movement. Emma's motionless body continued its immobility, and Regina's aching heart continued its hurting.

Henry had visited both days after school, and his tears of woe only added to the anguish of Regina's soul. The queen just wanted her family back, and she didn't much care how she got it anymore. The only thing that mattered to her was that she did get it and that she kept it this time.

Regina sat next to Emma, holding her cold, flaccid hand, and whispered to her once again. "Emma, darling, when you wake up, I promise I'll make up to you everything that I've done to you and your family. I swear that I'll work to regain your trust, and I'll show you that I genuinely am the woman that you fell in love with, just wake up, baby. Please."

She didn't.

**XXX**

Two more days had passed when she had gotten the news. Three years ago, Emma had signed a DNR that stated if she is brain dead for longer than three weeks; the doctors were to pull the plug on her life support.

Regina was furious. How could the doctors have found that? More importantly, why the hell would Emma sign something like that? Regina's heart couldn't handle this anymore. She was dying inside right along with Emma until Dr. Whale came in and said something that ignited her hope.

"Madame Mayor, Can I speak to you privately?" He asked as Henry and Regina sat next to Emma.

Regina looked at Henry and waited for his nod before she stood up and left the room with the doctor. Her inner consternation was enough to consume her whole, was this the time that he would admit that Emma was going to die? Was Emma never going to wake up and have to be unplugged? Was Emma going to wake up soon with no memory? Was she going to awake and be in a permanent vegetative state? Her heart was pounding; she was on the verge of an all-out panic attack, and she fought it as hard as she possibly could.

When the door closed behind them, the man turned to her with a solemn look. "Mayor Mills, there's no easy way to say this, but Emma's body is back in working order. Her lungs –although very bruised- are in a place where they should be properly functioning, but her brain, for some reason, still has not come back to working order. It's not telling her body to work properly, and I have no idea why. There is no outstanding damage to her brain. There is no rational medical explanation for this. It's like a terrible form of magic."

Regina's brain went alert:  _Magic_.

The Glass coffin must have had some risiduals of the sleeping curse or something else magical on it. That's why Emma hadn't woken up yet; because she was under a strange version of her sleeping curse, or some other type of potion that Gold had poured on it, and because Emma and Regina were in love, the curse would be broken by a simple kiss.

Regina's heart repaired itself as she nodded to the doctor, fighting back a euphoric smile and pretending to be upset at the news for appearance's sake, and then went back inside of the hospital room.

Henry looked at her inquisitively. "What did he say, Mom? Is Ma going to be alright?"

Regina smiled and nodded. "Yes, dear, It seems as though she will."

**XXX**

Henry had stayed at the hospital for another hour and a half, which Regina hadn't minded, but now that her son was gone, she could finally wake the love of her life; and she was admittedly glad that she could. She looked down at the love of her life and leaned down. She stopped mere millimeters away from the pale lips as she whispered. "I swear that every time our lips touch I can taste the rest of my life." She finished her sentence, and then connected their lips, preparing herself for the surge of magic that came with the kiss.

Except… It didn't.

It didn't, and Regina's heart shattered, her stomach knotted, her lungs deflated, her knees folded out, and her throat clenched shut.

"I'm not enough." She croaked as she began sobbing.

**XXX**

The next day, Regina awoke with a sore back –Sleeping in a steel chair does that to people-. (She regretted not accepting the very thin, but probably much more comfortable cot that she had been offered.) She sat up and stretched, cracking lots of air bubbles in her spine, and when she finally blinked away the sleep in her eyes, she was face to face with the man she hated more than anything…  _Neal._

She was immediately in defense mode, putting herself in between the standing man, and the unconscious woman, but her guard went down quickly as she saw the look of pure and utter anguish as he stared at the savior, his true love…  _their_ true love.

"What did you do to her?!" He asked tremulously, tears rapidly running down his face. "I let her go, so she could break the curse, not so that it could break her!"

Regina shook her head. "I didn't do this! Your insipid father did!"

Neal's facial expression contorted itself from devastated to a mixture of devastation, horror, and guilt. "My father?!"

Regina nodded. She didn't have the energy, nor the strength to answer the man's idiotic questions.

"How the hell am I supposed to believe you, The Evil Queen when you're the one at fault for all of this?!"

Regina's heart tore at the man's question… he was right; this  _was_ all Regina's fault whether she liked it or not. If she hadn't cast the curse, Emma and Neal would have lived together happily; raising Henry to be a prince until Neal died, and Regina would be banished from the kingdom.

She knew this because Emma's Wish Realm showed her what would have happened had it not been for Regina's pointless curse.

Everyone could be happy without her… _Emma_ could be happy without her. Everyone could have lived their lives joyfully. Emma would have had her parents, Henry would've had a father, and none of the pain that they went through would have never happened… Regina's cruelness and selfish ways had been the cause of EVERY trial and heartbreak they had experienced in the original timeline. She looked down at the love of her life's deadly-pale body and fought back a wail. "Because I'm in love with her." She whispered. "I'm selfish and arrogant, but I wouldn't hurt Emma or Henry. Not any more than I already have."

Neal looked horrified "You don't love her! You don't hurt the people you love the way that you've done the past twenty-eight years of her life!"

Regina didn't want to fight, but there was no way in hell that she was going to allow someone to tell her that she didn't love Emma. Because she did. She loved her more than anything. She sauntered forward angrily and pinned the man with a ferocious glare. "Don't you  _ever_  tell me that I don't love this woman!" She growled as she pointed an angry finger towards the woman of her dreams. "That woman is my universe, and even though she doesn't know about magic, or the curse, or that she is True Love personified, she loves me right now. When and if she wakes up, she will most likely hate me, but that doesn't mean that I don't love her. I don't deserve the one and only Emma Swan, but I still.  **Fucking**.  **Love**.  _ **Her**_ _!_ "

The man glared at her and shook his head. "I don't care if you love her, what I care about is fixing this curse. Don't true Loves kisses end curses?"

Regina rolled her eyes. "Are you really that much of a dot to think that I haven't tried that yet?"

Neal burrowed his brows. "How could you have tried? You aren't her true love!"

Regina was just about to argue and say that she was, in fact, a True Love of Emma's when the man caught her off guard by pushing past her. He made his way over to Emma and bent down, kissing her forehead.

Regina's jealousy flared up, and she started to rush towards the man to attack him when a burst of light shot through the room.

The Dark Curse was just broken… Neal was, in fact, Emma's one true love.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Please don't hate me... things will be explained.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I apologize if there are any typos (there shouldn’t be many If there are) I had to re-write this on my tablet because my laptop died on me. I hope you will enjoy!

Regina stood in shock and heartache as she watched Emma’s eyes flutter open; but when the blonde started gagging on the intubation tube, and the machines that she was hooked up to began to sound rapidly, Regina broke out of her panic and ran into the hallway to get help.

Regina saw a nurse in the hall and broke into action. “NURSE!” She yelled. “Please, help me! Sheriff Swan is awake, and she’s choking on her ventilation tube!” She declared.

At the news, nurses rushed in to take the tube out of her throat. When they were efficacious, Emma gasped for breath greedily. Emma looked at Regina with confusion written all over her face. “I’m alive? How the hell am I alive?” She asked with a croaky voice.

Regina opened her mouth to speak, but they heard the sounds of angry people outside of the hospital before Regina could give Emma an explanation, the doors to the hospital room burst open, revealing a seemingly irate Snow White, and Prince Charming.

“Regina! Get away from our daughter!” David yelled.

Emma furrowed her brows and spoke in a raspy voice. “Daughter? Who’s your daughter?”

The queen’s heart was hammering in her chest as she waited for the Charmings to announce their relationship to Emma. But before they could utter a word, Emma noticed Balefire.

The sheriff’s eyes opened wide, and an expression of total surprise and confusion crossed over her face “Neal!?!” She asked.

The man smiled nervously at his True Love. “Hey, Emmy.”

Regina’s stomach churned _'Emmy?’ What the hell was that?_

Emma shook her head. “No! You don’t get to abandon me and then show up over ten years later and act like nothing ever happened!” She snarled. “Right now I just want to talk to the doctor and get the report on what the hell has happened, and then go home with my girlfriend and son. I don’t have time, nor the energy for meaningless conversations and forced interactions.”

Regina was thoroughly confused. If Neal was her one True Love, why was Emma still being so dismissive of him? She knew that the man didn’t deserve the blonde savior, but she had just been risen from the dead by his kiss. That had to mean something, right?

Snow looked appalled at the fact that Emma was calling Regina her girlfriend. “Emma! You almost died because of her!” Snow said, and Regina was furious that she would accuse her of such a thing, but then remembered shortly after, that in this timeline, Regina hadn’t redeemed herself for all of her evil doings.

Regina was infuriated at the accusations nonetheless. “I know that I’ve done some exceptionally evil things, but even your futile brain should realize that I had nothing to do with the mines’ collapse.”

Emma looked genuinely confused. “Baby, what the hell is going on?!” She asked Regina.

Snow looked at Emma and answered for Regina. “What’s going on is that I am Snow White, Queen of the Enchanted Forest, and this is my husband, Prince Charming. We were forced to place you into a magical wardrobe when you were barely a day old because of this woman’s nonsensical grudge she held against me for something I did when I was ten years old. She murdered thousands of people and tortured thousands more. But now we are here, and we are so grateful to have you, our precious baby girl, back. Now, we can be the family that we always wanted to be.”

Emma looked stunned, and when she turned to face Regina, she looked pleadingly into the brunette’s eyes, which caused Regina’s heart to ache more. She was begging the mayor to tell her this wasn’t actually happening, and the brunette wished more than anything that it wasn’t. The mayor gulped before murmuring hoarsely the only thing that mattered to her at this moment. “Em-ma…”

The blonde had tears streaming down her face. “How am I not dead, Regina?”

The queen whimpered but refused to respond.

“ _REGINA_! How am I not dead?” The sheriff asked in a broken voice.

“T-true Love’s Kiss.” Regina whimpered.

“Was it you?” Emma asked coolly.

Regina shook her head in the negative, her head cast down to avoid eye contact. She was too ashamed to meet the eyes of the savior.

“Then who?” She asked the mayor.

Regina was about to answer but was rudely cut off by the mansplainer. “Me,” Neal announced proudly.

Regina couldn’t take this. _I wish that I could take this all back. I wish that I was her one True Love._

As soon as she thought that, the whole world froze, and Regina knew what was happening. Blue was there, and she was going to tell her what to do. She took a deep, shaky breath, and closed her eyes as she waited for the arrival of the fairy.

The wait took less than twenty seconds, and when Regina heard the fairy appear, she opened her eyes, found the woman, and lunged toward her. The fairy must have sensed that Regina would react this way because, with a roll of her eyes, she effortlessly dodged Regina’s attempted attack and magically relocated behind her.

“THIS IS YOUR FAULT!” Regina yelled viciously. “You knew that Neal was her one true love, but you led me to believe I actually had a chance! She is my true love, but I am not hers! **_He_** is.”

The fairy once again rolled her eyes in annoyance before she spoke. “This is why it took you so long to redeem yourself the first time.” The fairy said bluntly, which thoroughly caught Regina off guard.

Instead of allowing the fairy to see how confused she was, she went to defensive immediately. “What the hell are you trying to say, bug? You aren’t denying that this is all your fault! You **_KNEW_**!” She accused.

The fairy scoffed. “No, I knew nothing because there isn’t anything to know! Everything I told you has been the purest form of the truth that is possible to give!”

The queen wanted to smite the fairy, but she could tell that the woman was telling the truth. “Then why didn’t my kiss work?” She murmured sadly as she fought back her tears.

Reul sighed. “The kiss didn’t work because Emma loved you, but not all of you.” She said which only confused the former queen further. The nun realized the confusion and sighed as she extended her explanation. “She loved Regina Mills; the hardworking, no nonsense, brutally honest, heavily sarcastic, pain-in-the-ass mayor, and single mom to her birth son. But she doesn’t even know Regina Mills; Reformed Evil Queen, so how could she love her? You never gave her a chance to fall in love with all of you, just the parts that you offered her.”

Regina’s mind was spinning. This wasn’t Mother Superior’s fault. The blame was solely on her own shoulders, and even though she hated Neal, it wasn’t his fault. He may have abandoned Emma, but only so that she could fulfill her destiny. (Although contrary to what August had informed him; she could have done that with or without Neal by her side.) Then a thought struck her.

“Well, then why did Neal’s kiss work? She has no idea why he abandoned her. So how can she love him even after that?”

The fairy smiled sadly. “Emma has had over ten years to ponder that thought. Ten years, to get over it, and realize that although it hurts, she will always love Neal and cherish the time they spent together and the little boy that he gave her. She’s still angry, but her love for him is still there.”

Regina was furious. Neal had still hidden his true identity from her. “Neal lied too! He didn’t tell her that he was a 300-year-old man and the son of Rumpelstiltskin named Balefire!”

The fairy sighed. “No, he didn’t. But he did tell Emma that he had an emotionally stunted father that abandoned him for his own personal gain and that he felt like an ultra-centenarian trapped inside a twenty-year-old body. He hid nothing about himself that made him who he was.”

“So he’s going to get away with lying to her and abandoning her, but at the same time I’m going to be demonized for it?” Regina snarled.

Reul rolled her eyes. “Emma is still hurt and upset with Neal, but she’s going to be furious and not trust you now. I told you to tell her before Neal showed up, but you disregarded my warnings. Emma has every right to be mad with you. You are the reason she lived a miserable and lonely life up until this point. Then you made her fall in love with only a version of your true self and hid the truth from her for months. Neal was upfront with her about everything important and hid things from her that really had no importance to Emma’s life. He had no idea that she was the savior until the day he left. His past had nothing to directly do with Emma’s life. Yours did, pretty severely might I add.”

Regina sighed as she let the tears stream down her face. “Take me back.” She whined. “Just take me back to Emma and Hook’s wedding and let me live out the rest of my miserable existence.”

Reul shook her head. “I can’t. You’ve been in this timeline too long. You have to wait it out or win her heart. The choice is yours, but you had already decided that you were going to do this and win Emma so now that’s what you have to do. You win Emma, and you live out your Happily Ever After with her, because your future isn’t predestined… you two could just _not_ work out, or you could make her happier than either of the boys, and I’m sure that the latter will be what occurs. You two are the most beautiful couple I’ve ever seen, all you have to do is earn your happy ending with Emma. You have to prove just how much you love her, and how much you’ve changed. Not only to Emma, but now to your little boy. Snow and Charming have Red Riding Hood watching him at the moment because they are scared that you will use him or Emma to hurt everyone else.”

Regina tried to swallow the lump in her throat as she nodded in understanding. “What do I have to do?”

Reul shook her head. “I can’t tell you that. What I can tell you, however, is that you still have to worry about Neal. She will forgive him within weeks.”

Regina felt her heart race as she looked over to the frozen man. “What are the odds?” She asked. “What are the odds that she chooses me over Killian and Neal?”

Mother Superior frowned. “You and Neal both have a forty percent chance at winning Emma’s heart, and Killian has a twenty percent chance.”

Regina wanted to scream out the emotional turmoil that she was suffering but fought it back with a gulp. Her odds weren't very promising at all. All together there was still a sixty percent chance that she wasn't going to leave this timeline with the outcome that she was hoping for. The queen, however, was determined and willing to fight to the death for Emma Swan’s love. So she swallowed her heartache and nodded. “Okay.” she said. “You can go. I've got this.”

The fairy looked like she wanted to protest, but thought better of it and poofed herself away without another word.

As soon as the sun was gone, the room unfrozen and Emma was glaring up at Neal. “ _You_?” She spat out angrily. “There is no way in hell that you are my True Love! You abandoned me and let me take the fall for **_your_** crimes!”

Neal looked horrified and heartbroken and Regina couldn’t help but smirk, yet that smirk was wiped off her face when Neal spoke again. “No! That wasn’t me! I swear to you I had no intentions of letting you fall for that! August set you up, not I!” He declared.

Regina frowned, but before she could comment on how poor of an excuse that was David chimed in. “ I know that this is all a huge shock to you, sweetheart, but right now our main priority should be to keep this town safe; which means we need to execute the Evil Queen before she can do any more damage!”

Regina's heart froze as panic coursed through her body. She hadn’t thought about what would happen if Emma woke up at the same time as the curse broke, and right then she had wished that she had.

Emma stood up from her bed on her newly-healed legs and went to the plastic bag that contained her personal items and clothes. She shuffled through it and pulled out her handcuffs. Once the cuffs were in her hands she sauntered over to Regina and forcefully turned her around and pushed her against the wall.

“Killing someone without a trial and conviction is illegal in America. I’m not quite sure how you guys do it back in the Magical Forest or whatever the hell you call it, but here we have a justice system.”

Regina’s heart started to beat normally again. She could handle being incarcerated again, especially if it were Emma who was guarding her cell.

“Emma we can’t just lock her up! She has magic!” Snow White said. She will just escape and go straight back to torturing us all!”

Emma looked at Regina inquisitively before turning to the Charmings. “Well is there some other Magical person that can magic proof the jail or something?” She asked her parents dismissively.

Regina sighed, but still held hope that Emma wasn’t planning to leave her because the blonde hadn’t mentioned it yet. The only thing the sheriff had done since she woke up was ask questions and protect Regina from execution. She hadn’t even uttered a harsh comment towards the former queen. “Yes, darling there is. Rumpelstiltskin is able to do so.” She said without realizing that Mother Superior was just as capable of doing so as well and was also much more trustworthy.

Emma furrowed her brows. “Rumpelstiltskin? That elf guy that turns hay into gold?” she asked incredulously.

Neal corrected her. “Its straw, actually. And he isn’t an elf. Just a monster in the guise of a human. He’s also my father and incredibly untrustworthy. There is no way that we are going to him for help. Not when the Evil Queen is probably working with him.” Neal said harshly.

Regina rolled her eyes. “I’m not working for that insufferable imp. You must be brain dead if you think I’m that much of an ignoramus.” She said sarcastically to her competition. “Emma,” She crooned as she turned back to the love of her life and softened her facial expression. “I have very little magic at the moment. There is no reason to go through all the trouble of finding a way to suspend my powers. It’s entirely unnecessary.”

Emma looked incredulously at Regina. “Well pardon me if I don’t take my lying ex-girlfriend’s (who is apparently also the Evil Queen that only dated me to distract me from completing the ONE task I was destined to achieve) word. She said as she tightened the cuffs around Regina's wrists.

Regina’s heart shattered and her knees gave out which forced Emma to take on her weight with a grunt. _Emma is really leaving me._ She cried internally.

She fought back sobs as she tried to speak. “Emma, I-“

Emma shook her head. “Don’t try to lie to me, Regina. Don’t insult my intelligence more than you already have.” She said with a picture of hurt and anger mixed with a little confusion all over her face. “Fool me once, shame on me, really. I should’ve know better. A happy relationship just isn’t going to happen for me.” She said before looking to her mother. “I’m going to find that Rumpelstiltskin dude and have him work his magic (literally) before taking Miss Queenie here to the lock up. After that I want to take Henry home and spend some much needed quality time with him. Where is my son?” She demanded.

Neal looked up with guilt, realization, and hurt on his face. “Son?”

Emma ignored him, looking expectantly at her parents. “Emma, honey… We should talk.” Snow White pleaded.

The Savior looked away uncomfortably as she shook her head. “I can’t handle this right now. Too much is happening at once. I fall down an 80 foot hole in the ground where I was crushed by dirt and wood. Then I wake up god-knows how much later to find the man that broke my heart ten years ago standing over my body claiming to be my true love. Then I find out that the woman I had just fallen in love with is not at all who she says she is and is actually the Evil Queen that I saw in the Disney movies while I was growing up. That she was also the reason my parents (who are Snow White and Prince Charming) gave me up twenty-eight years ago. _Then_ to top it all off she was only with me because she didn’t want me to break the curse that she put my parents under and the only person who was smart enough to figure out her true identity is my ten-year-old son that she adopted. I’m a little overwhelmed and I just want to watch movies and eat popcorn with my son, okay? Where the hell is he?”

Snow and David both had tears in their eyes as they tightened their hold on each other. Regina’ stomach turned in disgust with herself at all the heartache she had caused these people. She wanted to fix things, but knew that she couldn’t.

Snow sniffled before she answered her daughter. “H-he’s at the diner with Red.”

Emma corrugated her brows. “Who the hell is Red?” She asked exasperatedly.

David seemed to catch on to his wife’s mistake of using Ruby's fairytale name. (Emma hadn’t heard all of Henry’s stories about the fairytale characters thoroughly because Regina had convinced him not to continue with it; so the sheriff had no idea who was who at the moment) “Ruby’s actual name is Red... y’know Red Riding Hood? Henry is with her and Granny at the Diner.” He clarified.

Emma nodded and pushed passed her parents without showing much outward emotion, but Regina could tell that Emma was currently in emotional anguish and completely overwhelmed. She needed Emma to hear it. So, through her tears she croaked out. “I love you.”

Emma scoffed. “ _Bullshit_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I apologize for the long wait.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I hope this helps clear things up about Emma's feelings.**

Regina fought back her tears as Emma escorted her out of the hospital. Crying wouldn't help her situation, not currently. It would only make Emma think she was trying to manipulate her again. She didn't blame the sheriff either.

Regina knew that she should have been honest with the blonde. She had enough magic to be able to lift something in the air or show Emma one of her memories from back in her Evil Queen days. The Queen could have done literally _anything_ to come clean to the blonde, but she had been a coward.

So, she remained silent -begging wouldn't earn her anything but a scoff and glare- and got into the cruiser that Graham had parked outback at Emma's request.

When the door slammed shut, she allowed a single tear to fall from her eye as she leaned her head on the window.

_I've got to fix this._

 

**XXX**

 

It had taken many years to get Emma to believe in Santa Claus, truth be told, she never entirely did, she was always a skeptic. Much like she had been for the first few moments after everything happened at the hospital, but now she was thrown for a loop when she realized that she came from fairy tales. It was who she was. Her mind was racing so furiously that it was starting to make her head hurt.

_Snow White and Prince Charming are my parents._

She hadn't believed them until she realized that her entire body was healed, yet her leg hair wasn't nearly long enough to have been in a coma for six months (the proper amount of time to fix broken bones), so the only 'logical' explanation was magic.

_Snow White and Prince Charming are my **fucking parents.**_

But, the hardest thing she had yet to come to terms with was that she had fallen for a woman that isn't capable of love. (At least that's what Henry had told her when she had driven him home from Boston)

_Snow White. Is. My. Mother._

She had fallen in love with a woman that saw her as nothing more than an obstacle in the way of her happiness.

_Prince Charming. Is. My. Father._

A woman that had murdered thousands of people.

_My Baby Daddy is the son of Rumpelstiltskin._

A woman that could destroy her with the flick of the wrist.

_Fairytales are real._

A woman that admittedly did everything for herself and no one else.

_Neal saved your ass by kissing you._

A woman who her son had warned her about time and again. But she had ignored him because Regina had dubbed him 'imaginative.'

_Neal's still a piece of shit._

A woman, who had made her feel special, and loved, and alive; but was directly responsible for her life of utter heartache, abandonment, loneliness, homelessness, abuse, and desolation.

_I'm the **fucking** Savior._

She chuckled at that. _Her;_ a lowly orphan with a criminal background who was currently transporting her Evil Queen was-girlfriend was responsible for everyone else's happy endings when she couldn't even figure out what her own was.

 _She never fucking loved you_.

Emma couldn't breathe at the last thought. It shredded her heart at the realization.

 _Regina_ ; smart, beautiful and funny… was the Evil Queen. (Who Emma was still having a hard time comprehending was a real person and not just a storybook character) She was the Evil Queen and had lied to her for months, had _used_ her to keep the curse enacted, had _used_ her for sex… She had _lied_ to her and said she was in love with Emma… Playing her for a fool. All in all; Regina had _**broken her heart**_.

In all reality, Emma was having a difficult time comprehending just what all exactly Regina had done…

_She tortured, enslaved, and murdered **THOUSANDS** of people, Emma. She's not the woman you fell in love with. That woman doesn't exist… that's the only reason she 'loved you'... because it was fake. **She** is fake… no one could love you, Emma. Haven't you realized this by now!?_

The pain in her soul was suffocating her from the inside out and all she could think of was how much she hated herself for believing she could be loved... The woman she fell in love with didn't actually love her and had only manipulated Emma to believe that she did so that she could keep her curse going. She meant nothing to Regina, and never would; that fact alone was enough to make Emma want to start cutting again…because she is never important to anyone. No one ever stays for her, no one ever wants her, and she had stopped attaching herself to others because they always ended up lying to her, hurting her, abandoning her, or framing her. Yet, for Regina she had made herself vulnerable, she had given herself wholly to her only for the queen to destroy her once more.

She should've known, because no matter what, the only person who could ever love her was Henry, and even that was only because it was a necessity... It was either her or Regina, so he picked the lesser of two evils (literally).

Emma bit her cheek in an attempt to abate the tremor of her lip as she pulled up the cruiser to Mr. Gold's shop. Regina had been silent the entire trip, which surprised Emma. She had thought for sure that the brunette would be trying to get inside her head the whole car ride in an attempt to coerce her into falling under her charm all over again. But, instead she had stayed seated, hands cuffed behind her back, and her head leaning against the window as she stared at the scenery that passed them by. _Probably trying to make me feel sorry for her. Remember, Emma, she's a cold-hearted murderer; she doesn't give a damn about me._

She got out of the Sheriff Cruiser and rounded the side to open Regina's door. When she opened it, she expected a fight to get the woman out, but instead, the Queen had gotten out willingly.

When she was out of the car, she saw the blank stare Regina had, and it Knocked the wind out of her.

She really had fallen head over heels for this woman... Well, not _this_ woman, but the person she had pretended to be.

It was going to take her some time to fully grasp the concept of Regina not being _her_ Regina, but the Evil Queen, and that gouged away at her a little more. Causing the heartache to grow even more ferocious. It felt as if her heart was entirely engulfed by molten lava, scorching every fiber, every cell, and every single inch of tissue; and the only thing powerful enough to cool the burning was Regina’s genuine love.

The pain was unsympathetic as she watched Regina get out of the car.

It was an all-encompassing type of pain. One that started from the deepest depths of her soul, and consumed her wholly. She stood, frozen in place as she stared off into the darkness of her pain.

Flashbacks to when she was eight years old and had gotten her food privileges taken away because she asked for a toy at the store.

" **You don't get to ask for things. I've already given you a home, Emma. Stop being ungrateful."**

To when she was fifteen and smacked for the hundredth time for being an inconvenience.

To all of her foster families where she was never really wanted, never really loved.

To the one foster father that had wanted her a little _too_ much. **"You're lucky they sent you to me, Emma. No one else could love you. Not really, not like I do."** He had tried to do things that she hadn't even let Neal do to her, but… for some reason, she _Had_ let Regina, and she regretted it. Yet, the foster father was right… no one really could love her. Because when she finally let her walls down for someone, they had just used her and hurt her and that's exactly why she was never going to let anyone else in. Just her and Henry.

Regina had never loved her. Neal had never loved her. Her parents had been willing to give her up for the better of the town without a second thought.

 _No one loves me. The Savior_ S thought as the pain in her soul burned hotter.

_I hate this pain. Why do I always have to suffer? Why can't anything just go my way for once?_

 

 

**XXX**

Regina stood out of the car and waited for Emma's instruction, but the woman seemed to be staring off into space. Although she was concerned, she decided to let Emma do what she needed to process everything that had just occurred less than thirty minutes ago.

The brunette continued to stand there silently for about three minutes when her worry was fueled by a low whimper from the blonde. Her heart ached to hold the younger sheriff, but instead, Regina just quietly spoke out in hopes to awake Emma without startling her, because that wasn't even close to what she wanted to do, all she wanted was for Emma to look at her with love in her eyes again. Instead of the love she craved though, what she saw staring back at her in those beautiful green eyes for the past half hour was a look of utter devastation and anger, but to Regina's surprise, there was never hate. "Emma?" She murmured.

It seemed like enough to wake her up from her whatever trance she was in, and the blonde's eyes focused back onto the mayor. "Right, let's go." She spoke as she cleared her throat awkwardly.

Regina smiled. The brunette had missed the woman she loved for the time Emma had been comatose, and though she didn't technically have Emma back, she at least knew that she wouldn't have to live in a world without her.

 

**XXX**

 

The bell chimed as Emma held the door open for the woman that had manipulated her into love and then walked through the door herself.

Once they were in the store, she looked around but saw no one there. "Mr. Gold?" She called out.

There were a few thuds and clangs in the back before an older grey-haired man appeared. "Ahhh! Hello Dearie! You must be the Savior!"

Emma furrowed her brow. She wasn't' quite expecting the evil Rumpelstiltskin to be so… _friendly_. "Yes, that's me. I've seen you around town before, but we've never been formally introduced." She said with an outstretched hand.

The man smiled (almost smugly) as he shook her hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Sheriff Swan. How may I be of assistance?"

 _He's hiding something, I can feel it in my bones._ She thought to herself. _I need to calm down, my instincts have been off since I got to this damn place. I trusted Regina, and she was hiding something massive from me for months!_

"Regina here tells me that you have the ability to prevent her from using her magic? Is that true?" She asked skeptically. Regina had said a lot of things, so had Neal. Like that they loved her, and would never hurt her… They had proven to all be lies, so what gave her a reason to trust them now?

The man smiled. "Ah! Yes! I have just the thing!" he said as he turned around and started walking. He walked across the room and reached behind the counter. He tugged out a black bag and reached into it. When he pulled his hand out of the bag, he was holding a black bracelet. "This little bugger will prevent the wearer from performing any magical acts; be it a potion, spell, or fireball. It stops them all." He came back over to the sheriff and offered it to her. "Once you put this on her only another magical being can take it off of her." He explained.

Emma frowned. "So, you're the only one that can take it off of her?" She asked.

The man smirked. "Oh, she didn't tell you?" He asked with his thick accent. "You're the savior. You have the most powerful magic of us all."

Emma was flabbergasted. Did this man really just say that she had magic? How the hell was that even possible? There is no way that she could have magic; she would have noticed at some point in her twenty-eight years… right?

 

**XXX**

 

As soon as Regina saw the all-too-familiar black bracelet dread coursed through her body. It reminded her of the agonizing electricity that streamed through her veins at the hands of Greg and _TAMARA!_ Her heart leaped at the memory of Neal's fiancée. Once Emma realized that Balefire had been engaged (and probably still was) there'd be no way she'd go back to him!

She fought back the smile as Emma pocketed the cuff and asked the man how much she owed. The man had insisted it was a gift to the Savior for breaking the cures. Emma had seemed hesitant at first, but she conceded with a nod before turning around and escorting Regina back outside.

.

.

When they reached the Sheriff Station, there was once again a mob outside waiting for the arrival of the Evil Queen. Regina sighed and shook her head.

 _I really wish that I had made better choices._ She thought before quickly catching herself _Blue, don't you dare appear. I need to do this on my own._

She held her breath to see if the slip of her subconsciousness had earned her a visit from her fairy friend. When the world kept on turning she let out a relieved breath as Emma opened up her door and led her inside.

The crowd proved to be much more threatening than she had remembered and at one point Regina had sworn she saw a knife, but Emma had been diligent, and firm and had managed to get Regina in without so much as a scratch. She turned around ferociously as Regina stood beside her and faced the villagers with a stern look.

"If anyone of you so much as looks at The Queen threateningly I will lock your asses up. Do you understand me? This isn't the Enchanted Jungle! You don't get to go around in mobs and lynch people because you think they deserve it. We have justice here, and justice _will_ be served!"

Regina chuckled at Emma misnaming the Enchanted Forest, but she was still in awe of the woman. Even now, after Regina breaking her trust, she was still protecting her. But this time, it wasn't because Henry had asked her to, this was all her free will. She could have easily let the townsfolk tear Regina limb from limb, but she _chose_ to protect her; because Emma Swan is the definition of hope.

She continued to admire Emma as she gently released the cuffs from Regina's wrists and ushered her into the cell.

"Aren't you forgetting the cuff?" She asked.

Emma frowned as she directed her eyes to the black bracelet. "Will I really be able to get it off of you in case of an emergency?" She asked.

Regina's heart swelled. _Emma still cares about me._ She smiled a sad smile as her throat tightened from the tears she was once again fighting back. "Yes, dear. Your magic will always come through in the times of crisis." She reassured, which was true. It always would, because she had seen it happen first hand. On more than one occasion.

"Give me your wrist." She said.

Regina obeyed and felt the little bit of magic she had, get stuck in stasis. It was an unpleasant feeling; it didn't necessarily hurt as it felt numb. Like when her foot fell asleep after sitting in the same position at her desk for too long. She sighed and resigned to her fate of staying in the cell for a few days.

As soon as Emma gave her a second set of clothes, and Graham came to relieve Emma of her post, Emma was gone, and Regina felt more alone than she had ever had before.

_I should have fucking told her._

 

**XXX**

**  
**

Emma pulled up to the diner in her yellow Beetle and parked it. She got out and walked up the steps to see a sullen Henry sitting at a booth with a mug of something in front of him. Emma's heart yearned to swipe that frown off of his face. It had been years since she had loved someone the way she loved Henry. Not as family, but this little boy, whom ten years ago she thought she wouldn't ever see again, had weaseled his way into her heart without any effort whatsoever.

She entered the diner, and when the bell chimed the boy looked up with tears in his eyes. When he registered Emma's presence, he rushed out of his booth and into his birth mother's arms.

Emma enveloped him greedily, "Hey, Kid. Shh. It's going to be alright." She said.

The boy sobbed into his mother's shoulder as he shook his head. "I knew it was true, but then she had me believing that I was crazy Ma. I was so confused, but I was right all along. Why couldn't I have been wrong?" He cried. "I wanted so badly to be wrong."

Emma had no idea how to be a mother, but she would gladly take up all the classes Storybrooke had to offer so that she could be the best damn mother Henry could ask for. All she wanted was to make this young boy's life the greatest she could and make him smile again because he deserved that. He didn't deserve to be emotionally traumatized "I know, kid. I know." She whispered before she pulled back slightly from the embrace so that she could meet Henry's eyes. "But this isn't your fault. Your mom made some bad decisions, but that doesn't mean that you are bad. Okay?"

Henry nodded. "I'm very mad at her." He admitted. "And I'm really, really sad."

Emma smiled a sad half smiled as she nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I am too." She admitted. "But we can be mad and sad together, alright?" She asked. "Maybe with some ice cream, popcorn and thriller movies?" She added with a playfully punch to the shoulder.

Henry nodded. "Alright."

That night, Henry and Emma had watched taken 1 and 2 and ate three tubs of ice cream. Now, Emma was carrying the sleeping boy to his bed. She took her socks off and tucked him in. She kissed his forehead and left the door creaked open just a bit (Like he always asked).

She then brushed her teeth, changed into pajamas and then crawled into bed.

That night, both the Mayor and the Sheriff cried themselves to sleep.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I'd love to hear what you think.**


	14. Chapter 14

The next morning Regina woke up in her cell to see Graham sitting at the desk in front of her cell. The (former?) mayor sighed as she sat up and frowned when she realized that she wasn't going to be able to see Henry or Emma today.

"Deputy." She said to get the man's attention.

The Huntsman turned around. "Your Majesty." He said curtly. "Going to try to get me to rip out your step-daughter's heart again?" He asked sarcastically.

Regina frowned. She'd forgotten just what all she had done to these people. "No." She said with a shake of her head. "And I am so sorry that I ever tried to get you to do something so cruel and inhumane. It was heartless and vile of me to do that." She said seriously.

The man seemed shocked at the sincerity in the Queen's tone but shook it off. "You're playing mind games, Queen. I'm not falling for it this time."

Regina sighed and shook her head defeatedly. She should have expected that but she hadn't expected the curse to be broken so soon, and she definitely hadn't expected it to be ended by the man who fathered her son with the woman that she was now madly in love with. The Queen had expected it to have broken after she admitted her identity and then earned Emma's true love. Instead, however, she was a coward and had chickened out multiple times from proving her identity as the Evil Queen, and had ruined everything.

She had probably lost her son, she had most certainly lost her True Love, and now, truth be told, she had no reason to smile. No reason to laugh. No reason to breathe, yet, for some reason she just couldn't give up hope. Not until the spell ran out of time and sent her back to Killian and Emma's wedding day in the original timeline. She still had a chance, if she stopped making asinine choices.

_If Emma is still alive, I still have a reason to breathe._

**XXX**

Regina laid on her cot as she watched the clock on the wall for a few hours, as Graham typed eagerly at his computer. She hadn't been given food, hadn't been offered a bathroom break, and hadn't really been acknowledged since she had first woken up that morning. Her stomach was growling, and her bladder was yearning to be allowed to release the pressure that had grown throughout the night and on through the morning.

"Graham, may I please use the restroom; and perhaps I could get a snack to eat as well, please?" She asked as politely as she could conceive.

The deputy swiveled his chair around and fixed her with an expressionless stare. "It's Deputy Humbert to you, thanks."

Regina swallowed throatily and nodded. "Right, I apologize for the disrespect, but may I please have something to eat?"

Graham rolled his eyes. "It's nine in the morning. Sheriff Swan will be here shortly with your food, and she can choose to do with you what she wants. I don't know why she saved you. If it were up to me, I'd have fed you to the wolves after everything you've done; specifically, to her and her family."

Regina's heart leaped at the possibility of seeing Emma; now she'd be able to explain everything and beg for forgiveness. "I love her. I know what I did to her, and her family was atrocious, but I need her in my life. I regret my mistakes in the past, but I can't stop loving her. I truly have changed."

The man rolled his eyes. "Right. Well, even if I did believe that line of bull, the things you've done are unforgivable. Even if Sheriff Swan managed to forgive you, you'd be lucky if she gave you her friendship."

Regina shook her head at the thought and frowned. "I need to be more than just her friend." She lived that life; she really couldn't go back to that misery; not after getting a taste of having a relationship with Emma felt like.

Graham still looked thoroughly unconvinced that Regina was sincere. "You can't really afford to be greedy though, now can you? Sometimes the best way to stay close to someone you love is by just being friends. Even if it is torture to your soul. I would know."

Regina let out a shaky breath as her emotions started to torture her. "The problem with being 'just friends' with her is that I'll have to watch her be with someone that doesn't deserve her when I could do so much better."

Graham scoffed. "You don't deserve her either." He corrected.

And Regina knew that. Of course, she knew that. But she could still do better than both of her competitors combined. "I know." She said. "But I could still do better than Balefire." _I could do better than guyliner too._ She added mentally.

The man rolled his eyes. "I highly doubt that. You couldn't treat someone with respect unless it was beneficial to yourself. Nor could you love someone that wasn't yourself."

Regina sighed and laid back down on her cot. Talking to the deputy was a futile activity. It wasn't going to earn her any support from the man. He seemed to be  unconvincible of her rehabilitated self.

A few moments later, the phone rang, and after a quick discussion, Graham hung up and rushed out of the office.

Regina was once again, left completely alone, that is until a black cloud appeared in the middle of the room, and Regina's heart sank.

_Rumple._

When the black smoke dissipated, the man was revealed with an evil smirk on his face. "Hello, Dearie." He said in faux friendliness.

"What do you want, Gold?" She sneered.

The man smirked and snickered his evil laugh. "Why, nothing at all. I just wanted to thank you!"

Regina frowned. "Thank me?" She asked warily. "Thank me for what?"

The man grinned devilishly. "For giving me the perfect opportunity to destroy your happiness while at the same time getting back into my son's good graces!"

Regina's heart began to hammer into her ribcage in trepidation and dread. Her happiness that he was talking about could only be one thing- _Emma_ and with Emma came – _Henry_. The stupid imp was going to take them away from her, and at the same time, she was downright powerless to do anything to stop it.

"LEAVE THEM ALONE!" She screamed as fear burned through her entire being. She frantically tried to muster up superhuman strength and break the bars that trapped her.

Rumpelstiltskin laughed. "I'm not going to touch them, just make sure that you are no longer a threat to my son's ability to win them over."

Regina's heart constricted. What the absolute hell could he mean by that?

A few seconds later, Regina heard yelling from outside, and within a few moments, she saw the blonde woman that owned her soul angrily screaming at the man that had abandoned her all those years before.

Rumple giggled his signature high pitched giggle. "Ah, young love, isn't it magical?" He asked before poofing himself away.

Regina glared at the spot that the man had just vacated before focusing her hearing on the argument outside the window.

**XXX**

"Hey, Emma," Neal said nervously.

Emma shook her head as she handed Granny the money for the food and turned to leave the diner. She wasn't emotionally stable enough to deal with the man who still owned a piece of her already destroyed heart.

She walked silently as Balefire followed her like a lost and beaten puppy. "Emma, you can't keep doing this to me."

That was it; her shattered heart couldn't keep silent anymore. She needed answers. She twirled around on her heels and fixed him with a broken expression. "How did you do it?" She asked; tears running down her face.

"Do what?" He asked perplexedly.

"How did you leave? How did you just walk away from me like I was nothing and never look back? I was hopelessly in love with you. Everything just ended so fast, why? The way you talked to me, and the way that you looked at me… I thought that what we had was real, that it was _special._ I actually thought that you _cared_ but you just… _disappeared._ You abandoned me just like everyone else. So I need to know, how did you move on so fast? How did you just get up one day and decide to never see someone that had been such a huge part of your world again? Am I really that easy to forget?" Emma finished and wiped away her tears.

Neal swallowed and shook his head. "I don't know, Em. I was stupid. I let August make me believe that the only way for you to break the curse was to abandon you. I'm sorry."

Emma finally had the answer that she'd needed for the past decade and nodded her head. It wasn't sufficient, but it was honest, so she'd have to live with it. She turned around and started walking away once again.

He followed her, and she bit her lip to fight back an angry scream.

Once they were right in front of the sheriff station, he finally spoke again. "Fine, Emma you can be mad at me for now, but eventually you're going to forgive me, and when you do… I want you and Henry to move back to New York with me. We can restart our lives together, and we can be a family again. Right now, I guess I can settle for visitation."

Emma was furious. Neal: The man who had abandoned her, and left her to deal with an unplanned pregnancy all on her own, dared to demand to see 'his' son. Had the nerve to ask her to move with him to New York and 'restart' their lives together, and as pleasant as leaving this town sounded, she just couldn't do that yet. She knew the second she stepped foot outside of the town line, Regina would be slaughtered. It wasn't necessarily that Emma believed she didn't deserve that, she just didn't feel like it was justice. Not to Henry at least.

After everything, Henry admitted that he still loved Regina; and Emma knew that losing his adoptive mother would without a doubt devastate the boy beyond repair. He didn't want her dead; he wanted her out of his life, but still alive. So, Emma would recommend that the judge sentence The Queen to life behind bars with weekly visitation from Henry. (Whoever the damn judge was).

"Emma, don't you see? We're True Loves! We were meant to be together!" The idiotic man exclaimed. "We owe it to ourselves to make this work! I've missed you so much these past years."

Emma scoffed. "You didn't seem to think that when you abandoned me to deal with the pregnancy all on my own! I had to go into labor in a fucking _**prison**_ Neal! A _**PRISON!**_ "

Neal looked like Emma had just stabbed him in the heart, and Emma ignored the sting that it sent to her chest when she saw it... because he deserved it. He deserved to hurt the way that he hurt her. "Emma, I swear I would never have left if I had known. I would never."

That sliced Emma right in her heart. "Oh, that's just great Neal. I was never enough to get you to stay, but if I had your kid, well... then that's a different story!"

Neal had tears pouring down his face. "Emma, I love you. I didn't realize how much you needed me back then. I just followed August's orders."

" **FUCK AUGUST**!" Emma screamed. "He wasn't your father, he wasn't your boss, he was just some strange biker dude, and you felt the need to follow his words blindly? That's all it took for you to abandon me? A STRANGER'S word and you just up and leave without even so much as a goodbye? And now I find out that you weren't who I thought you were. You're worse than Regina!"

Neal looked like he'd been punched in the gut but quickly recovered and glared viciously. "That woman is a monster! She murdered thousands, tortured thousands more, and enslaved an entire kingdom before ripping them away from their lives and wiped them of their identities and separated them from their families! She's the reason you were an orphan, to begin with! I am nothing like her! At least I have the ability to love!"

Emma scoffed. "You don't even know what love is! If you did, you wouldn't have left! At least _she_ raised the son that you abandoned!"

Neal swallowed visibly with a pained expression on his face. "I've made mistakes; I know that! But you and I, we're it for each other! At least, you're it for me. No one could ever make me feel the things that you do. I need you, and dammit Emma, you need me too!"

Emma had to fight back the urge to slap the man as she shook her head vehemently. "No, Neal. I don't. I am a strong woman. Everything that's hit me in life I've dealt with on my own. I've never had anyone to lean on except myself. I've cried myself to sleep, picked myself back up in the morning and wiped my own tears. I have grown from the things that have tried to break me. I've done all of that by myself; I don't _need_ anyone. Especially not you."

At that moment, her radio sounded, and Graham's voice echoed through. "Sheriff, we have a situation here. I need you down here by the docks." Emma growled and slammed the bag of food from Granny's that contained Regina's breakfast into Neal's chest. "Can you give this to Regina? I have to go."

Neal glared at the bag before gripping it in his calloused hands and nodding. "Fine." He said begrudgingly.

Emma nodded. "I guess I can't say you've never done _anything_ for me now." She said sarcastically before she ran towards the cruiser and got in.

**XXX**

Regina watched the entire interaction and frowned. Emma was hurting, and she hated it. She also hated the fact that Neal was marching into the sheriff's station with her food. _I don't want to talk to that degenerate_.

The man walked right up to the cell and threw Regina's bag of food through the bars and watched it hit the floor. "I don't know what game you're playing, your majesty. But you must realize that Emma Swan is _MINE_. You may have had her brainwashed before, but now that the wool has been shaved off her eyes, she will never fall for you again." He said viciously.

Regina's heart sank; It was very likely that Emma _wouldn't_ forgive her for everything she's done. At least not enough to give her a chance romantically, but she would not stand for anyone treating Emma as property. That was not going to fly. "First of all, you worthless thief; Emma is _not_ a piece of property that you can stake a claim to. Unless there are two rings on her left ring finger, she doesn't belong to anyone, and neither do you."

Neal scoffed. "I highly doubt that you didn't feel like she was yours when you two were together."

Regina growled. "No. I didn't. Not the way that you were implying. In our relationship, she was my woman, and I was hers. It wasn't a designation of ownership but of passion. It was a loving and passionate expression that represented the fact that out of every person that has ever existed she is my ONE."

Neal stared at her blankly for a moment before he started laughing. "You expect me to believe that you actually loved her? That you loved my son? You're the fucking Evil Queen; you are incapable of love."

Regina's heart set on fire with rage. "I LOVE HER MORE THAN LIFE ITSELF! I love Henry more than myself. I love them both, and no matter what you think, that truth cannot be changed!"

Neal rolled his eyes. "No, you just need the town to think that you love them so that they'll humanize you and let you free. Then you'll just start torturing us all over again. No one is falling for your bullshit, anymore Regina. We can see through your lies."

Regina bit her tongue. "Leave me the hell alone, Balefire. I don't have the time nor the energy for meaningless interactions with worthless people."

Neal scowled at her. "You know, I'll never understand how Emma fell in love with any version of you."

Regina smirked and looked him up and down before snarling. "Ditto."

The thief's face turned red, and he seemed as though he wanted to strangle the woman before him, but instead, he fisted his hands and spoke. "You know, you may be a bitch, and super difficult to deal with, but Emma is twice as hardheaded as you, which is why she's so stubborn about this whole abandonment thing."

Regina was irate. **HOW DARE** this man act as though Emma was the problem here. "Emma has every right to be mad! She has every right to be furious; she has every right to hate our guts! Emma Swan is strong and independent. And underneath every strong, independent woman lies a broken little girl who had to learn to get back up and never to depend on anyone. The thing about Emma is that she is so resilient, fierce, and self-sufficient that she doesn't need you, or me, or anyone else! If you're in her life, it's because she _**wants**_ you there, but if you screw up, she'll be content without you. We both hurt her in ways that even we can't comprehend, so it's no wonder that she's done with both of us."

Neal glared at Regina. "You almost had me convinced that you love her, but then I realized that just because you accurately described Emma doesn't mean anything. You only know all of this because you had her under your trance for the past few months."

Regina sighed. "Just leave."

He did.

**XXX**

Thirty minutes later the front doors of the station slammed open and entered Emma, dragging a screaming Leroy in by his handcuffs.

"I have every right to walk around Naked! It's a free country!" The man yelled.

"We may be a free country, but we aren't a _clothes free_ country." Emma countered in annoyance. Regina smiled at that, Emma's witty comebacks were always able to melt Regina's heart. Everything about Emma was, truthfully.

Emma walked the man to the back of the station and placed him in a secluded cell. Regina heard him yelling drunkenly as the blonde closed the soundproofed iron door (that she had created mere hours after realizing that time was reverted). Emma came back with an annoyed look on her face. She looked at Regina emotionlessly. "You eat?" She asked.

Regina was speechless as the terrified butterflies swarmed in her stomach. She managed a nod.

Emma nodded. "Kay. You need a shower? Bathroom break?"

Regina nodded again. Cursing herself for not being able to converse properly.

"Well, which one is it? Shower, toilet, or both?" Emma asked.

"B-both." Regina croaked out hoarsely.

Emma raised her eyebrows, seemingly unimpressed as she nodded and walked up to the cell. She gestured with her finger for Regina to turn around, and Regina obeyed. "Back up to the door and put your hands behind your back."

Regina obeyed begrudgingly as Emma placed the queen's wrists in handcuffs. "Is this really necessary?" She asked quietly.

Emma chuckled humorlessly. "I don't know, your majesty. Was lying to me, manipulating me, playing with my heart, using me for sex, 'really necessary'?" She sneered before opening the door to the cell and continuing. "Was holding a grudge against a ten-year-old for telling a secret, coming back decades later to enact a curse, and forcing me into a life of utter heartache 'really necessary'? Was ripping an entire kingdom away from their homes, brainwashing them into becoming completely different people, and forcing them to bend to your every beck and call 'really necessary'?"

Regina lowered her head and shook it in shame. "No." She whispered heartbrokenly. "It wasn't, and I wish I could take it all back, but I can't. I can't Emma, and I can never fully make up for it, but I can do my best for the rest of my life. I can make you happy. I can be the Regina Mills that you and Henry both deserve. If you'd just let me." She said earnestly as Emma guided her to the bathrooms.

"I doubt that," Emma admitted.

When they reached the bathroom, Regina was surprised at how much she had forgotten about the room. It was a large opened room with five shower stations that were separated by tile walls and had curtains for doors. On the other side of the room were five stalls that each had just a simple toilet and a flimsy plastic door. On the far wall were five sinks and a huge mirror.

Emma pulled a towel, and soaps and shampoos from the cabinet behind the door. The sheriff opened another cabinet and got a blue jumper out of it. She placed the items on a bench in the middle of the large room then turned around and uncuffed Regina. "You have a half hour to do what you need to do."

Regina nodded heartbrokenly as she watched Emma turn around and leave. Her heart ached for the woman's touch.

She undressed herself and got into the shower. She let the water wash over her face and mask her tears of woe.

When Regina was done with her shower and had done everything that she had needed to do, she sat on the bench and awaited Emma's arrival.

The door opened, and Emma stepped in. "Ready?" She asked.

Regina nodded, stood and held her hands behind her back.

Emma shook her head. "It's fine. Just a twelve-yard walk." She said.

Regina smiled in appreciation and walked back to her cell. When the door was closed, and Emma sat at her desk in the same room, Regina tried to chance fate. "I know that I should have told you about my identity, or even done something to prove who I am, but every time I tried, I got too scared. I was scared that I would lose you." Regina said in a broken voice. "I love you so much, Emma. You and Henry are my everything."

Emma turned in her chair and looked at her coolly. "I want to believe you, I wish that your words were true, but I know that it was all a game to you, to begin with, and even if what you said were true you shouldn't have let us have sex without telling me who you are. You should've stopped it. You shouldn't have even started a relationship with me under the guise of someone else. I trusted you, and you broke me, so now your words mean nothing."

Regina fought back tears. "I love you so much that it hurts, Emma."

Emma had tears in her eyes as well as she spoke. "I loved you. At least, I thought I did. But instead, it turns out that I fell in love with a fictional character that you pretended to be."

Before the brunette could respond, Regina's wrist started searing itself, and she screamed out in pain.

Emma seemed to be dubious of Regina's pain, so Regina lifted up her wrist to show her that she wasn't faking.

Emma's eyes went wide before she rushed to the woman's cell and opened up the door. She kneeled before the woman and held her. "Regina! Oh, fuck. What's happening?"

Regina knew exactly what was happening, Rumple had visited her so that he could mark her, and now was enacting the mark.

The wraith was about to come.

"W-we need to get the hat," Regina said.

Emma furrowed her brow. "The hat? What hat?"

Regina realized that Emma had no idea what she was talking about and clarified. "We need to get the Mad Hatter's hat because a soul-sucking demon is about to come after me," Regina explained.

Emma looked at her with wide eyes as the wraith's mark became visible.

The blonde shook her head. "I really need a Lexapro."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I know that that isn't exactly how the Wraith's mark worked in the show, but they didn't really explain the rules of it so I improvised.**


	15. Chapter 15

Regina was frustrated with everything now. It had been eight days since the mark on her Wrist appeared, eight days since she had screamed in agony and Emma had held Regina in her arms as the pain in her wrist consumed her. Eight days since Emma vowed to protect her from the wraith, but now, Emma looked like she didn't believe her anymore. It had been eight days, and Regina had absolutely no clue what the fuck was going on, or why the Wraith hadn't tried to attack her yet, and she was furious because all she wanted, more than anything, was for Emma to trust her once more, and if this wraith would just show up, Emma might start to believe in her again. Right now, though, as Emma was arguing with someone on the phone, all she wanted was for Emma to smile at her. It'd been much longer than eight days since the last time she saw that radiant smile flashed her way.

"I don't know when, ma'am, but as soon as I find whoever this judge is, things will pick up, until then, Mayor Mills is securely behind bars," Emma said indignantly. After a few moments, Emma spoke again. "It says on the door there is a judge, but I can't find a single person in town that claims that job."

Regina frowned. There was no town judge; she just put the title there when she created the curse because she thought that it would look more official if there were a Judge in town. She sighed and was about to interrupt the woman when the blonde yelled back at the other half of the phone call.

"Yeah? Well, bite me!" She screamed before slamming the phone onto the receiver so hard that the phone broke. "Shit."

Regina chuckled. "Why didn't you just ask me about the Judge?" She asked. "It'd have saved you a lot of time and effort. Talking to these people can be almost impossible."

Emma lowered her head into her hands as she massaged her temples. "Well, you're the one who actually thinks a soul-sucking dementor is after you, so... I figured I'd spare you the complexity that is the missing Judge." Emma snarked back with a sly grin.

Regina laughed nervously. They were still on very rocky ground, but the Savior had been less hostile for the past three days, and she was reveling in the familiarity of the situation. It was like the third year of Emma being in Storybrooke all over again. "I assure you that I'm as confused as you are, I have the mark of a wraith burned into the flesh of my wrist, and there's no feasible way that it could be anything other than a wraith mark, so I'm thoroughly perplexed. It should have attacked by now."

Emma chuckled as she continued to massage her temples. "Why can't I ask Mr. Gold about this again?"

Regina frowned. "Because he's the one who marked me!" She said a bit too harshly.

Emma sighed. "I really have no clue why you appointed me Sheriff; I am not cut out for this at all." She said.

The queen's frown deepened. "You're a much better sheriff than _Graham_ ever was." She assured.

Emma cackled as she opened her eyes and looked at Regina. "I'm three days late on paperwork that my 'mom' wants me to file. I haven't found the Judge yet, and people are starting to act out and blatantly disobey me because I haven't prosecuted you yet. I'm losing control of the town little by little every day."

Regina's gut churned and twisted nauseatingly at the way Emma was talking about herself. She hated seeing her beautiful goddess so distressed. She had to make this better, and she had only one way to do so. "The Judge doesn't exist." She admitted. "I hadn't realized you were searching for one until I heard you mention his name over the phone a few minutes ago. The is justice system here doesn't exist besides the sheriff's office. I put a fake title on the door so that it looked more official and intimidating, but there was really no need for a judge when the townspeople did whatever I wanted them to do." She said nostalgically.

Emma furrowed her brow. "Is there really a postman named Connor Basset, then?"

Regina pursed her lips in an attempt to hide her smirk as she shook her head. "Nope, no such person."

That earned Regina a roll of the eyes and a slight twitch of the lips. (Not quite a smile, but it was more than the Regal woman had expected so soon.)

"So, I'm not exceptionally horrible at my job." The savior said sarcastically.

Regina smiled. "No, you aren't. You are very efficient, and I'm sure that the paperwork Snow is trying to get you to do is a huge pile of nonsensical rubbish. You have been criticizing yourself for so long that you have begun to believe that you aren't good at anything, but that couldn't be further from the truth, Miss Swan." She said sincerely, staring into those beautiful jade eyes that she'd fallen in love with ages ago. "I know what it is like to feel like to never be enough, but you've got to realize that it's all in your head. The people that hurt you for your entire life aren't what matters. What matters is that you prevailed over them, that you became something when they said that you wouldn't. You are _good_ Emma Swan, the only thing stopping you from believing that is you. Try accepting yourself for the incredible woman that you are, and see what happens. I finally learned to do that because of you, and I've been happier because of it."

Emma stared at her silently for a few moments. "I don't get you." She said.

Regina's heart sank. Of course, Emma wasn't going to listen to her advice, why should she?

"I mean, I come to town to give your son back, but instead you beg me to stay. I had every intention of crawling back into that Yellow Bug and leaving town without ever looking back, but instead, you offer me Apple Cider, and then beg me to stay in town. You could have easily just thanked me and let me go, I would've never broken the damn curse, but instead, you insist on my staying, you practically shove the Deputy job down my throat, and then the next day you promote me to Sheriff without me having any experience whatsoever. Then you befriend me, and ask me on a date, then make me fall in love with you, fuck me, and then it turns out that you are the evil Queen and had never told me the truth about anything. I incarcerate you, and then you tell me that a demon is after your soul, and then you give me this whole inspirational speech about accepting myself. Why didn't you just let me go? Why play with my heart?"

The Queen felt like she would throw up. Emma thought that Regina had only seen their lovemaking as _fucking_. Emma thought that Regina hadn't ever loved her. Emma thought a lot of things about their situation that wasn't true.

Regina sighed and leaned against her cell door. "Emma, the moment I laid eyes on you, I was immediately infatuated by your beauty and power. You exuded confidence and goodness, and all I wanted was to capture some of it for myself and drown myself in your eyes. I know that I lied to you about my true identity for far too long, but I had never intended to keep it a secret for as long as I had. When I asked you to stay, I fully anticipated to tell you within the first few weeks of our friendship, but I kept backing out because I was afraid of messing things up. I had the purest intentions; I swear I did."

Emma frowned. "I want to believe you, but my lie detector hasn't been working properly. I always got the sense that something was off with us, but I always thought that it was just my self-doubt. Now I'm realizing more and more, that it wasn't that. It was my lie detecting superpower trying to warn me that you were hiding something, but I had ignored it because I wanted to be able to trust you, I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. I forced myself to trust you wholly, and it backfired in my face."

Regina was excited that they were finally having the long overdue talk, but her heart broke at Emma's assertions… she had hurt Emma far worse than she had presumed. "I know how hard it is for you to trust someone once, let alone twice, but if you just give me one last chance, just at a... a _friendship_." - GOD, she hated the thought of going all the way back to being friends with Emma when they'd been so much more, but she had to do what she had to do if she ever wanted to make this work with her again. - "I can prove to you that I'm the same person you fell in love with… just a with darker, and more revolting and horrendous past."

Emma shook her head. "I can't let my guard down with you again, no. I don't get to have friends; people only hurt me. Henry is the only one that cares. He's the only one that'd never hurt me."

Regina wanted to scream out in agony as the anguish from Emma's declaration consumed her soul. "I'd never hurt you, Emma. I'd rather die than hurt you."

Emma's eyes softened, and for a moment it looked as though Regina had finally broken through to her, but then something clouded in her eyes, and her face steeled into a look of hurt. "But you already did."

That was like a kick to the stomach for Regina, and the wind was swiftly knocked out of her. "Emma, I never wanted that. I never wanted to hurt you, and I know that my mistakes are evil and inhumane, but I can't take them back. I regret them, and I wish I could take them back, but you and I both know that is impossible. I just want you to know, that I am truly, deeply, sorry."

Emma looked at her; she seemed to be studying her face and sighed. "Why did you change as soon as I got to town? Everyone, including Henry, says that you were excessively cruel until the day I came into town. They said you did a total 180 and went from massively bitchy, to charming, witty, and happy. What changed?"

Regina desperately wanted to tell Emma the truth but knew that telling her that she time traveled from the future to try and win her affections, would only sound fabricated and crazy. So, she sighed and shook her head. "The day I laid eyes on you was the happiest day of my life, Emma. I could see a future with you and Henry. Raising _our_ son together as a big happy family. Then, sending him off to whatever his future endeavors may be, and traveling the world with you. Having holidays with you and Henry sitting at the table. Perhaps even your insipid parents as well. I could see eternity... Just you and me and our little boy."

Emma furrowed her brow. "Just one look at me and you saw all of that? I doubt that."

Regina frowned. Maybe Emma would never really love her again. Maybe she had been too slow, too cowardly, and now she had lost the blonde forever. She decided to go about the situation a little differently when they were once again interrupted by the man that the queen hated with all her might.

"Emma," Neal said sweetly as he entered the room; irritating the brunette beyond comprehension. "It's five o'clock. Are you ready?"

Regina's heart sank. _Ready? What the fuck does he mean ready? She's not going anywhere with him!_

Emma smiled at the man, the way she had smile at Regina during their relationship. "Yeah, just have to wait for Graham to get here and relieve me."

Regina was panicking, her worst nightmare was acting out right in front of her, and all she could do was watch behind the door to her cell.

Neal seemed nervous, Emma looked uneasy, but they were still going somewhere… _together_ , and that wasn't a comforting thought. Regina hated it. She had to do something, and although it might be a low-blow, Emma still deserved to know the truth about Neal.

"Taking her to meet the fiancée?" Regina asked.

Neal glared at the former mayor. "Mind your business queen." He growled through a clenched jaw.

Emma looked at the man, her eyes filled with hurt, and Regina instantly regretted her outburst. "F-fiancée?" She asked.

Neal slowly walked towards the sheriff with his hands out as if he were trying to tame a wild animal. "It's not what you think, Em." He said cautiously.

Emma chuckled humorlessly and shook her head. "Go fuck yourself, Neal. Can no one jut be fucking honest around here? To think that I was really going to let you meet Henry. To think that I considered that you might _actually_ be a good man," She scoffed and shook her head. "Get the fuck away from me, Neal. You're _engaged_ and trying to get me to fall in love with you again? I hope your fiancée finds out and whips your ass… wait, no…. That's right… you like that." She says coldly.

Regina would smirk if that didn't cause her to visualize Emma spanking a naked Neal. The thought churned her intestines.

Neal looked pathetically at Emma. "Please, just let me explain."

Emma shook her head. "You're a cheater; cheaters are lowlifes and untrustworthy; which means that I can never trust you again. My lie detecting senses always went off around you since you got back, but I never knew why, I do now, and no man like you will EVER be around my son!"

Regina snickered. The irony was that Had let an even _worse_ man into their son's life, and was going to marry him until time reverted.

"Emma, please!" Neal begged, he ran straight up to the woman (A risky move on his part) and kissed her… A _terrible_ move on his part, because not only did Regina's skin boil, and her jealousy flare to an unnatural level, but Emma was visibly enraged by the man's action, she pushed him off her and kicked him straight in the groin.

Regina smiled and practically jumped for joy when the man bent at the hip and grasped his apex as he let out a groan of pain.

Emma grabbed the man and dragged him to a neighboring cell. She threw the man in and slammed the door shut behind him. "You just sexually assaulted a police officer. How do you think your fiancée will feel about that, asshole?" She asked coldly.

Regina smirked. _That's my savior._

Just then, time froze, and Regina was furious. She had told Blue to let her do this on her own.

As soon as the Fairy popped up, the brunette prepared to tear into the nun but was paused by the terrified look on the woman's face.

"What's wrong?" Regina asked coolly.

Reul frowned. "The wraith. It's coming."

Regina smiled. "Good. This will give Emma a reason to believe in me again."

Reul shook her head ferociously. "No, it's terrible, Regina! Somehow, Rumple realized that something was fishy with the town, and the way you were acting, so he mutated the wraith! It will go after its target and destroy anything that gets in its way! It can hurt anyone it deems a threat! Meaning, that he _can_ kill Emma, Henry, Snow, David, _anyone_ that tries to save you! The wraith hasn't awoken yet, but it will within a week. I can't see where it's being kept, but you've got to get out of that cage and find it!"

Regina groaned. She had been anticipating the wraith's arrival for a week, and now she just wanted to kill it. "Will Emma die? Can you at least tell me that?"

Blue looked apologetically to the queen. "He's blocking anyone from telling. I'm not sure how he knows, but I do know that he needs to be neutralized before he can mess with the timeline and ruin your chance with Emma. I also can tell you that this wraith is a massive threat, and you need to work diligently to find it and destroy it."

Regina was on the verge of punching the fairy. She seemed to know _all_ the impending complications, yet _none_ of the solutions. "How about you figure out a way to get me out of this damn cell." She deadpanned.

The fairy frowned. "If I did that, that'd be interfering with the timeline, and it could potentially be disastrous."

Regina growled. "JUST TELL ME WHAT TO DO!"

Blue rolled her eyes. "Evil Queen, huh? I think Drama Queen fits best." She said before herself poofing away once more.

_Great… Just fucking great._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * * *
> 
> **Emma is slowly but surely warming up to her Queen, will it last? What do you think the wraith will do?**
> 
> **Let me know in the comments! ;)**


	16. Chapter 16

The rest of the day went slowly. With Graham relieving Emma shortly after she had caged up the man of horror.

It was ten o'clock in the evening, Graham had fallen asleep at a desk, and Neal was raking his hands across the bars of his cell, forcing Regina to stay awake.

_Clank._

_Clank._

_Clank._

"That's quite enough of that!" Regina whisper-yelled. She heard a cackle from the other cell as the clanking continued. The brunette growled in annoyance. Why was a three-hundred-year-old man acting like such a child?

She laid there, the clinking continuing to get on her nerves when the door to the station flew open startling Graham awake as a pajama-clad Sheriff Swan ran through. "Emma?" Neal and Regina asked in unison.

"Glad you know my name." The blonde said sarcastically as she walked toward the cell that contained Regina.

Regina's heart started thudding in her chest. What the fuck was happening? _Please tell me she's fallen in love with me again._ She thought hopefully as Emma was unlocking Regina's cell door. The blonde opened the door and eagerly pulled the queen by her arm to the interrogation room... Once the door was closed behind them, Regina finally had the courage to ask what was going on. "Not that I'm not always thrilled to see you, but what on earth was so urgent that you needed to see me in the middle of the night while you're garbed in pajamas?" She asked curiously, although she wasn't complaining in the least. Emma looked unequivocally alluring in her black tank-top and red-and-black flannel night pants. She was always this gorgeous though, no matter what she wore, and it took all Regina had in her to stop herself from jumping the Savior's bones.

Emma worried her bottom lip and looked to the side for a moment before making eye contact with her ex-girlfriend. "So, you may have been right," Emma said, and when Regina furrowed her brow in confusion, the blonde illuminated her statement. "About the wraith. You might have been right about the wraith." She said awkwardly.

Regina fought back an amused smirk. She found it absolutely adorable when Emma tried to hold onto her bravado even when she was trying to be vulnerable. "How did you come to this conclusion?" Regina asked, taking pity on the woman she loved and ignoring the apology that she was trying to give without really giving it.

Emma cleared her throat and sat on one of the chairs in the room. "I asked my m-… I asked Mary Margaret about wraiths, and she said that she had heard of them, but didn't know if they are real. She said that she didn't know much about magical things at all and if I wanted answers that I could trust I should go talk to her friend Reul because she might know more about them than anyone."

Regina's heart started hammering in her chest as it filled with hope. "Oh?" She -much to her chagrin- squeaked out like a mouse. "And what did the Blue Fairy say?" She asked.

Emma sighed and shook her head. "She said that Wraiths are very real, and incredibly dangerous, especially to their targets and the loved ones of the targets. Also, that if we skipped town that it'd be the safest way to escape one if it were, in fact, coming after you. She showed me the pictures of the marks, and it is identical to the one on your wrist, so I am inclined to believe you."

Regina nodded, fighting hard to contain her relieved smile. Blue had come through, after all. Even making sure Emma knew that _this_ wraith wasn't just a danger to Regina, but to anyone that was deemed an obstacle. "So, does this mean you are going to help me find it and freeze it or send it somewhere it can't hurt anyone?" She asked hopefully.

Emma sighed. "It means from now on; I am going to take the late shifts at the station so that we can search for this damn thing at night. That way we don't have to worry about anyone catching us and starting world war three." Emma said.

Regina nodded in understanding. If word caught wind that the Sheriff and Evil Queen were colluding privately, it would be categorically disastrous. The riots would start up once more, and it'd be the Ogre War all over again. "And what about Neal?"

Emma glared. "That's another thing we have to discuss." She said coolly.

Regina saw the pent-up anger behind that scowl and swallowed nervously. "What about him?"

"How did you know that he is engaged?" Emma asked.

"I-… I" Regina paused, which appeared to have flared up red flags to the Blonde Savior before her.

"Don't lie, Regina. I'm trying to help you, but at the moment I can't even think to begin to trust you again unless you tell me the truth." Emma said sternly.

Regina had no idea what to do. She thought back to the previous timeline, trying to remember how she had found out that Neal had been engaged, and came up empty-handed. She had no idea who told her or when, so she told the only truth that she could. "I don't remember how I knew. I just remembered the fact a few days ago, and I stowed that information away because it wasn't my place to tell you. Then I saw the way you guys were acting like you were going on a date or something, so I figured he hadn't told you yet, and I decided that you deserved to know the truth and I blurted it out." That was the most accurate thing she could tell Emma.

Emma studied her, and Regina wrung her hands together in anticipation. Emma nodded. "My Spidey Senses say you're telling the truth, but are still hiding something from me. I don't trust them one-hundred percent, but I believe that you're telling me the truth."

Regina sighed in relief. Then, threw caution to the wind. "What about when I say that I love you, do you believe me then?" She asked.

Emma stared at her for a moment and shrugged her shoulders. "Say it," Emma said nonchalantly, but Regina could tell that she was hiding the nervousness and pain.

The queen gulped and took a breath before staring into her True Love's eyes and speaking. "I love you, Emma Swan."

Emma stared at her, looking desperately like she wanted to believe the former Queen. Regina held her breath as anxiety swept through her and clenched painfully around her heart. Emma shook her head defeatedly as an expression of turmoil swept over her face. "Even if you were telling the truth, how could I trust you again? How could I know that you'd never hurt me like this again? How can I know for sure that you'll not repeat your actions from the past?"

Regina felt like collapsing. Instead, however, she chose to sit down in the chair on the opposite side of the interview table. "You can't, I suppose, not yet at least." She said in a broken voice. "But I can show you. I can prove it to you, and I can earn back your trust. I know that I haven't earned one, nor do I deserve the chance to ask for one, but I can't live without you in my life, so I am begging you for a chance to prove myself to you. You don't have to take me back, just give me an opportunity to redeem myself."

Emma pondered her statement. "Fine, the kid has been asking about you anyway, I think he'd appreciate a surprise visit from you." She said. "He misses you. He has been really depressed since he found out that the Storybook really was true, and although you hurt us both, I believe you genuinely love him, and that it'd be good for both of you to see each other."

Regina's heart ached at the reminder of just how devastated and angry she knew Henry really was. She couldn't blame the boy, Regina had been much too strict with him as a child and then tried to make him believe he was insane when he had been the only sane person in the entire town (until Emma showed up; Once she showed up he was one of two). Not only that, but she had destroyed everyone's happiness in an attempt to gain her own. The Regal brunette might not have tortured them during their time in Storybrooke, but she had them terrified to 'step out of line,' had basically raped Graham every time she needed a fix. (Although she had wiped that part out of this timeline because… that was so fucking wrong. He had no choice but to consent since she had his heart), and had forced David into a coma for almost three decades, separating him from his true love when they had offered her a chance at redemption numerous times before she had cast the Dark Curse. She separated families, had made them live dull, unfulfilling lives, and gave them no free will. She may not have tortured them physically, but mentally, and emotionally she did much worse.

She had no right to hate ten-year-old Snow for telling Cora about Daniel. Hell, she hadn't even realized what had happened to Daniel until she was practically an adult, and had profusely apologized when she did. She never meant to hurt Regina, and the Queen knew that. She had decided to hold onto irrational anger when she could have been loved by Snow White. Regina could have had a daughter in Snow White if she had allowed herself the ability to forgive Snow for something she hadn't meant to do in the first place. Snow had been nothing but kind to her until Regina had killed Leopold and had proclaimed her a kingdom-wide fugitive.

So, really, Regina knew that she hadn't needed to depend on Rumple to help her find happiness. If she had opened her heart up to Snow, she could have had a family. (well, she could have at least had someone who cared about her and wanted her happiness). Instead, however, she had let the Dark One's influence cloud her judgment, had allowed the imp to make her feel as though darkness was the only source for her happiness, and had let the man turn her heart as dark as a lump of coal in a Naughty child's stocking on Christmas morning.

The ex-Queen knew that Henry had every right to be mad, and hurt. Regina had been a monster in the past when she hadn't had a viable reason to be. The former mayor had allowed Rumple and her mother to brainwash her, and although that wasn't a sufficient reason to excuse her evil deeds, it was the only thing she could tell her son when she finally had the opportunity to speak with him. She also needed to apologize to Snow and Charming, and the rest of the city, because although she had redeemed herself in the original timeline, she had not done so here, so the people had every right to hate her.

She had murdered, tortured, and enslaved hundreds of thousands of innocent people all because she wanted revenge on a child that had told a secret to a woman that was able to manipulate even the Dark One; so really how was a child supposed to withstand the woman's conniving ways? Regina realized now that she should have blamed Cora, _not_ a child who knew no better. Snow had only the best intentions when she had told Cora, and although her pixie-haired ex-step-daughter was the most annoying human being that had ever lived, she still cared for Regina, and Regina still cared for her.

She would deny that las thought to anyone that breathed, but it was true. Snow White was a part of her family now that she had redeemed herself and started down the path to her own Happy Ending, and as she had told Emma back in the Alternate Universe: Her happy ending was _not_ a man… Her happy ending was Emma Swan.

Emma was the one that could keep her heart full once Henry went off to college, and started his own life. Henry wasn't her happy ending as she had once thought, no, that was not his burden to bear. It wasn't fair to give him that title and make him feel as though he was the only reason she had to live, guilting him into staying at her side and not leaving town to explore the world like she knew he is destined to do when he grew up. He had his own happy ending with his soulmate and his future children. He would always be her and Emma's son, he would always have a big piece of Regina's heart, and he would always be in her life; but Emma Swan was her happy ending; and now that she found it, Regina was not about to let it slip out of her hands.

She knew how difficult she had made it in the past for the people of Storybrooke to trust her. She hadn't actually apologized to them when the curse broke, she hadn't shown remorse until almost a year later, and didn't blame them for thinking that she had only done so for the sake of Henry. Now, though, she intended to make that different, she wanted things to be more relaxed, she wanted a fresh start, not just with Emma, but with the town as well. She wanted the trust of the _entire_ village, not just the majority.

"R'gina?" Emma called out cautiously, breaking Regina out of her inner reverie.

The brunette shook her head in an effort to clear her mind before she focused her attention on the Sheriff and offered her a tight-lipped smile. "When can I see our son?" She asked distractedly. She wanted to see him; _dear_ _**GOD**_ did, she ever, but she also wanted to find the wraith, and make sure that she and everyone she loved was safe from it.

Emma smiled a half smile, one that seemed genuine and melted Regina's heart. "Well, since I said we are starting the hunt for the wraith, why not now, and then we can start searching?" She asked.

Regina's heart started to thump speedily against in her chest cavity in excitement at seeing her son. "Yes!" Then she realized that it was after ten o'clock at night and Emma still had their ten-year-old up. "Miss Swan, would you care to explain why you have my son up two hours past his bedtime?" She asked with a glare.

Emma rolled her eyes. " _Our_ son is awake because they don't have school tomorrow." She said unconvincingly. Regina raised an eyebrow in a challenging manner. Emma sighed in annoyance. "And I can't resist his puppy eyes." She admitted hurriedly with a guilty smile before she led Regina out the back door of the station and into the parking lot.

Regina laughed, before realizing that Emma had left Henry home alone to march into the station and question Regina. "You mean to tell me that you left him unprotected!?" She asked in a worried fury.

Emma glared. "No, your highness. I left him in a house with a protection spell around it. I had the Fairy do that when I realized that there are magical beasts around here that I'm not aware of. When she confirmed that the wraith was real, I took extra precautions. She's going to start teaching me how to use my magic too. I may not have as much experience in the mother department as you do, but I do love our kid, and I'll do whatever I can to protect him." Emma said bluntly as she unlocked the cruiser doors.

Regina's heart swelled at the intense passion behind Emma's mother duckling speech. She smiled adoringly at her True Love, before reaching for the back door of the patrol car. Emma saw and shook her head. "Uh-uh. Front seat. You're not my prisoner anymore." She said. "Well, at least not until morning." She chuckled.

Regina smiled and nodded her hand in thanks before opening the passenger side door and getting in.

**XXX**

The sheriff cruiser pulled up to the Swan residence about five minutes later. When the engine was switched off, anxiety started to sear through Regina's heart; she had to find a comedic relief. "Is your yellow death trap in the shop?" She asked with a joking smirk.

Emma corrugated her brow. "Why do you ask?"

Regina chortled. "Because you drove the patrol car here and your bug is nowhere to be found." She said as if it were to be obvious to Emma. (Which it should have been)

Emma huffed. "You're too damn observant." She said in exasperation. "The radiator went out. Should be good as new tomorrow." She said as she closed the car door behind her.

Regina followed after her and took a deep breath once she reached the porch. Emma held her hand on the doorknob, and when a burst of white light illuminated the door, she opened it and gestured for Regina to enter. "Only Henry and I can let people in, and they can only enter if we hold the door until they cross the threshold and the door is shut behind them. Otherwise, they're gone."

Regina raised her eyebrow and puckered her lips in an impressed manner. "That's pretty sophisticated stuff. I'm impressed." She admitted as she walked through the door, and waited in the foyer for Emma's direction.

Emma closed the front door and gestured up the stairs. "Same room as before." She said. "I'll give you two your privacy. After you put him to bed, we need to start working on a plan to get the damned wraith."

Regina smiled and nodded. "Sounds like a plan." The Queen said as she watched the Savior walk away. When she looked down at her feet Regina frowned at how she was dressed; she didn't want her baby boy to see her dressed in a jail jumper "Miss Swan?" She called out tentatively as Emma crossed the room.

The blonde turned around and looked at her curiously. "What can I do you for?" She joked as she raised her eyebrows and pressed her lips together.

 _Free_. She answered internally. Because it was true, if Emma wanted her, Regina would take her to the bedroom, and they could go to town. Regina smiled at the thought, and her heart fluttered. _Stop it, Regina. We've got to be serious right now. Emma doesn't want me right now, and we can't be perverted if we ever want her to want me again!_ She chastised herself.

"I was wondering if, perhaps, you'd allow me a change of clothes before I interrupted his gaming session." Regina nervously asked because that was no doubt what Henry was doing in his room.

Emma widened her eyes. "Oh, shit! I can't believe I almost sent you up to him in that. That'd have devastated you both! Yes, in my bedroom closet, on the top shelf there should be my favorite teal dress shirt of yours. We wear the same pant size, so you can pick a pair of your liking. If I chose for you, you'd not be happy." Emma chuckled. "I know you don't like jeans, tank tops, or leather."

 _If they're on you, I do._ "Thank you," Regina said as she turned and walked towards Emma's all-too-familiar bedroom. She sauntered over to the walk-in closet and fount the aforementioned dress shirt and took off the pale blue jumpsuit to put it on. She then searched around for any type of dress pants and finally found a black pair. She squeezed them on and put her shoes back on before hurrying out of the room, but before she did, she noticed an envelope with: _**Emma 3**_ inscribed on it. She couldn't deny the curiosity mixed with jealousy that crashed into her like a wrecking ball, but she fought to hide it as she placed the jumper onto Emma's super queen bed and marched up the stairs. Her focus should be on Henry at the moment, not her failed relationship. Although it did no good; she was entirely focused on all three things; her failed relationship, her failed motherly relationship with her son and the fact that she still needed to find that damn wraith.

She shook her mind clear as she reached the top of the stairs, and when she had arrived at her son's bedroom door and knocked lightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **What do you think Henry is going to say? Will they find the wraith? Emma and Regina are getting closer and closer (finally; just kiss please.) And when oh when is Rumple going to rescue his son?**


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **This is the longest chapter in the entire story, and a LOT is going to be happening... I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

Regina stood in front of Henry's door nervously as she waited for the young boy to answer. She heard him say a few things, and then listened to the familiar sound of the XBOX being shut down before footsteps made their way to the door. The door slowly opened. "Sorry, Ma I just was playing online with Nick and-" The boy cut himself off as he stared at his adoptive mother with wide eyes. "Mom?"

Regina smiled nervously as she tried to swallow the lump in her throat. "Henry, sweetheart, may I come in?"

The boy glared at his mother. "What did you do to Ma?" He asked as he ran down the stairs. "MOM! MOM WHERE ARE YOU?!" He screamed in terror, breaking Regina's heart that her little boy believed she would ever hurt his birth mother.

Emma ran towards their son and fell to her knees in front of him as he enveloped the blonde into his arms and tucked his head into the crook of the woman's neck. "Shhh, buddy, it's okay. Your mom is here because I invited her to come and see you. She's done nothing wrong, and her bracelet is still on just to be safe, okay?"

Henry nodded and wiped his eyes. "I thought she hurt you so that she could take me back." He said.

Regina met Emma's eyes who was staring at her sympathetically. Emma looked back to her son. "She agreed to come here because I told her how much you've been talking about her, and that you wanted to talk to her. Do you still want that?"

Henry looked at Regina, whose heart was beating nervously in her chest as she held her breath in anticipation for her baby boy's answer. He looked at his blonde mother, once more, and then back to Regina before nodding. "Yeah. I want to talk to my mom." He said flatly.

Regina let out a relieved breath before smiling at her son and offering him her hand. "I'll follow you to wherever you feel most comfortable talking." She said in the most solid voice that she could manage. (Not too successfully, however)

The ten-year-old looked at the offered hand and frowned, causing Regina to retract her hand as if it had been burnt; her heart cracking as she did so. It was clear that the boy wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt, but that he was still petrified of her.

He looked at Emma one last time, and she offered him an encouraging smile and nod. "I'll just be in the living room reading. If you need me, I'm right here, but you won't. She loves you, kid."

Henry straightened his shoulders and nodded before leading Regina down the hallway into what seemed to be an office space that held Emma's old bail bond cases. Henry sat in one chair facing the door, and Regina sat on the other opposite him. "Why did you change as soon as Ma got to town? Was it because you didn't want her to take me?" He asked as soon as Regina was seated.

The brunette frowned. Brazen wasn't what she had expected from Henry, but she supposed that spending so much time with Emma had rubbed off on him. "No, Darling. As much as that does seem like the most logical explanation, that isn't at all what happened. When she came into town, and I looked into her eyes, I instantly fell in love. I changed because I wanted to be the person you and Emma deserved. I _wanted_ to change, but I was too scared of telling you both the truth. I was afraid that if I did, that your mother would either take you away from me and never look back, or she'd leave us both. I am sorry that I hurt you, Henry, it's just that I forgot how to love correctly until your mother reminded me."

Henry put a fist to his mouth as he visibly contemplated the confession. Regina sat nervously in her chair as she waited impatiently for Henry's next words. He looked up at his mom. "You killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people because you were mad at Snow White, what would happen now if Ma or someone made you mad."

Regina's heart felt like it had been stabbed with an arrow that was on fire. "Henry, back then I was Evil. I refused to accept that Snow was innocent, and I let Rumpelstiltskin and my Mother brainwash me and turn me into a monster. I had no reason to fight them back then, but now I do. Not just for the benefit of you and Emma, but because I don't want to be that person again. I know that I have a lot to make up for and that I could never fully redeem myself and pay penance for what I've done, but I do intend to better myself every day for the rest of my life. I desperately want to be the mother that you deserve, and I really hope that eventually, I can convince Emma to give me a second chance and that I can be the girlfriend, fiancée, and eventually wife that she deserves. Because I love you both and without either of you I can't be happy."

Henry stared at her. "You don't think that I'm you're only chance at happiness now?"

Regina chuckled. Her boy was always so much smarter than he should be for his age. "You were right when you kept saying that you weren't my happy ending. My happy ending is a life with Emma, and you are part of that life."

Henry smiled for a few seconds and then frowned again. "But I thought my father was her true love? He's the one who woke her up with True Love's kiss."

Regina frowned for a moment but then recollected her composure. "Emma is the Savior, and has a rare ability to have more than one True Love."

"You and Balefire?" The boy asked.

Regina smiled sadly and nodded. "Yes, and Killian Jones."

The ten-year-old's eyes widened in disbelief. "Captain Hook!?"

Regina sighed. "Unfortunately."

Henry frowned. "A thief, The Evil Queen, and an Alcoholic Pirate?" He asked. "I think she has a type."

Regina laughed out loud for a moment. "It seems as though she does."

"You don't seem so evil anymore." He said as he stared at his adoptive mother intently. "Are you really trying to be better?"

Regina nodded. "Yes." She said without any hesitation.

"You swear on everything you love?"

"Yes"

"No, take backs?"

"No. No, take backs, Henry."

Henry bobbed his head once in acceptance. "I'm still upset with you." He said with hurt on his face.

Regina nodded sadly. "I'm still upset with me too."

"But I don't want you to die." He said.

Regina furrowed her brow. "Die? Who said that I'm going to die?"

Henry frowned. "I heard Snow and Ma talking about a demon or something. It's coming after you. That's what the burn on your wrist is from, and that's why our house is under the protection spell." He said matter-of-factly.

Regina frowned. "Henry, you don't worry about that. We will take care of the wraith. All you have to do is focus on your schooling and having fun."

"But if you keep staying in a cell you're going to be an open target for the wraith! You won't have any protection! If you stay here, you'll be safe!"

Regina wanted to stay there, she did, but it'd be an agonizing experience because she'd be with her family, but she wouldn't be _with_ her family. She'd doubtlessly sleep in the guest bedroom or on the sofa bed, not in Emma's bed curled up next to her. Emma would stay in the house to make sure Regina didn't go wandering off into the woods to find the wraith, while Henry was at school and the whole town would be rioting because the Sheriff released the most Wanted criminal in Storybrooke. "Henry, I don't think that is such a good idea." She said.

"Why not?" Henry asked with disappointment written all over his face.

"Because, dear. Emma and I aren't together any longer, and because of that, it would be very challenging for us both if I were to stay here for a while. Plus, the citizens of this town would not be thrilled that the Evil Queen had been released without serving her time."

Henry shook his head vehemently. "Ma is the Savior they'll obey whatever she says. Some will be upset about it, but they would all eventually fall into line. Please, Mom… talk to Ma about it? Please?"

Regina pursed her lips as she considered her options. "I suppose I could talk to her, but Henry, if she doesn't agree to it, you are not to hold it against her, understood? It isn't a fair thing to ask of her considering everything I've put her through. I'm fortunate enough to be sitting here today."

Henry's beaming smile was worth the heartache she had just set herself up for… Asking Emma to let her move in with them until the wraith was destroyed was only going to kill her when Emma rejected her. Even if the Sheriff didn't refuse her, (which she would) living under the same roof as the sheriff was going to be anguish because living with Emma, without being able to hold her and touch her would be absolutely torturous.

The boy yawned. "I promise I won't, mom. But she will say yes, I just know it. She's the savior!"

Regina smiled. "It seems to me that it is time for you to go to bed. It is far past your bedtime, young man."

Henry smirked. "Well, it's not my fault Ma is cooler than you."

Regina hummed in disapproval. "Is that so? Well, she may be 'cooler' than I am, but is she as good at tucking you in as me?"

Her son's face crinkled up in disgust. "I'm ten, mom. I'm too old to be tucked in."

Regina scoffed. "Oh, right. I forgot… double digits are when everything changes, right?"

The boy nodded. "Right." He yawned. "I'm really tired." He said as he stretched out his arms.

Regina frowned. She didn't want her baby boy to leave just yet; it'd been over a week since she last saw him, and the thought of him going so soon until god-knew-when was enough to make her stomach churn. She wasn't quite ready for that long of separation. It wasn't his college years, yet. She still had time until this type of separation was supposed to happen. Even then she doubted that it would be easy to be away from her son that long. But her son was exhausted, and it was best that he went to bed. "Well, then I think you should get some sleep, sweetheart." She said before she planted a tight-lipped smile onto her face.

Henry nodded as he stood up, and Regina expected him to walk out, but instead, he crossed the room and slammed her into a bear hug; one that she greedily responded to. She held her son tight for as long as he allowed. "I love you so much, Henry. I promise that from now on I'll only be good. I want to be good."

The boy tightened his hold on his mother as he rested his head on her shoulder. "I love you too, mommy." He mumbled sleepily.

Regina felt tears brim her eyes as her lip began to quiver. Her baby boy was in her arms and calling her mommy. That was enough to make her heart explode from relief and happiness. She never wanted to let him go.

"Do you think Ma will ever take you back, mom?" He asked sleepily into his mother's neck.

The brunette frowned and gulped down the lump in her throat. "I hope so, Henry. But I did a horrible thing to her, so I don't know."

Henry nodded. "Don't give up; there's always hope."

Regina smiled and tightened her grip on her son. "I won't give up until she says, 'I do' to someone." She whispered into her ear.

The ten-year-old's breathing evened out, signaling that he had fallen asleep, and Regina smiled lovingly as she stood up with the boy's sleeping body still wrapped around her. She exited the room, and walked down the hall, stopping to stare at Emma who was reading a book and sipping hot cocoa. Her heart froze at the elegance the woman showed just by doing such a mundane thing. The queen looked at her True Love, and then to the boy in her arms and her heart, felt completed until the realization hit her; this wasn't domesticity, not really. She was just a guest in this house, she was still Emma's prisoner, Emma was still her ex, and Henry was still wary of her, although he was trying very hard to forgive and forget.

The brunette had apparently been staring too long when Emma gazed up from her book and met Regina's eyes. She gave the brunette a gentle smile. "He fell asleep, huh?" She asked softly; melting Regina's heart in the process.

Regina gulped and nodded. "It appears so." She croaked out in a murmur."

Emma smiled. "I'll help you get him into bed." She offered as she placed her bookmark in the novel she was reading and stood up. She stretched her arms above her head, causing gorgeous taut biceps to visibly tense, and send a shot of arousal through the other woman _. God, she is perfect._

Emma walked over to Regina, and placed a gentle kiss to Henry's head before leading Regina up the stairs, and untucking the blankets of Henry's bed so she could lay him down. When Regina placed their son on the bed, Emma took off the boy's slippers and covered him with the blankets. They both kissed his forehead and left the door cracked just a little bit before making their ways downstairs.

Emma led Regina to the living room where the blonde had been reading and sat down on her couch once more. Regina sat in the love seat diagonal from her and looked at Emma as anxiety flooded her body. She really hoped this would be the conversation that led them back to each other, but she highly doubted it would be.

"We have a lot to discuss." Emma finally said, breaking the overwhelming silence between them.

Regina gulped. "Where would you like to start?"

Emma tucked her feet up under herself as she took a sip of her beverage. "Well, for starters, how'd it go with Henry? He fell asleep in your arms, so I'm assuming that's a good sign." Emma said with a genuine smile, a smile that took the brunette's breath away.

Regina cleared her throat and nodded. "Uh, yes, yes! It went much better than I had anticipated, although he said something that worries me."

Emma looked at the brunette with concern written on her face. "What's that? Is he doing okay?"

Regina diverted her eyes to avoid eye contact with the blonde. "He seems to think that you'd be willing to allow me to stay here until the wraith is gone. I told him that it was much more complicated than that and that it wouldn't be wise and-"

"Yeah, that's actually a fantastic idea. I was going to suggest that when you got back down here because it just occurred to me that this was the safest place for you at the moment."

Regina shook her head, sure that she had misheard. "No, he thinks that _**me**_ moving in _**here**_ would be a clever idea." She clarified, trying to cease the hope that was crawling up into her heart from growing. _Emma doesn't want me yet, I've got to stop setting myself up for more hurt than I have to._

Emma nodded with raised brows. "Yes, Regina. I know that. I said I was going to suggest that too. You'd be safer here, and I can't exactly put a protection spell on the Sheriff Station without everyone getting suspicious and starting rumors."

Regina's heart was hammering in her chest… did this mean that Emma was taking her back? "So, you mean… we can, you know… start over?"

Emma choked on her cocoa. "What?!"

Regina's heart fell to the ground. _Guess not._ "Nothing, it was a childish thought."

Emma looked at her like she was a monster. "Look, I'll believe that you loved Henry. You lied to protect him or something… I don't know. But me? You need me to be with you so that the town will back off. You don't lie, and keep secrets from the ones you love. Especially not who you truly are. Do I think that you're still the Evil Queen? No, because the Evil Queen can't love, but you _do_ love Henry, so you may have been the Evil Queen in the past, but you aren't anymore. That still doesn't mean that you're an honest, trustworthy, and kind person. It means that you'd do anything for Henry."

Regina gulped. "You hate me." She said as she fought back her tears.

Emma furrowed her brow. "No, I don't hate you. I don't quite trust you, nor do I want to be with you, but I don't hate you. You gave my son everything that I could never have… that may be your fault, but at least you didn't curse our son too."

Regina frowned and nodded in understanding. "Will you ever see me as a love interest again?"

Emma shrugged. "Instead of starting off our relationship with honesty you smeared it with lies. Trust, loyalty, honesty, and communication are the components that make up the foundation of a happy and healthy relationship. Once you lose the honesty and trust in a relationship, there isn't a relationship. Sorry only works when you make a mistake that doesn't betray the trust you had with your significant other. But when you do break that trust your relationship is practically destroyed because forgiving is easy, but forgetting and trusting again is sometimes impossible."

Regina couldn't fight back the tears this time. "I want you to trust me, Emma. Please."

Emma had tears in her eyes, but she wiped them away furiously. "Stop it!" She demanded. "Stop asking me to trust you again when I'm still trying to learn how to breathe after the last time you let me down."

Regina swallowed thickly. "I'm… I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do. This wasn't supposed to happen. I love you, so damn much, and I know that I lied and manipulated you. I know that I'm the reason you lived a life of misery until four months ago. I know that I'm the reason you never had a family, the reason you couldn't raise Henry on your own. I know that I'm the reason you can't trust many people, and I know that you resent me for that. I wish I could take it all back, but I can't, and I don't know how to fix this because all I want is for you and I to be together. To raise Henry together, then send him off to his future together, and visit him at his home together, babysit our grandchildren together and live out the rest of eternity together. I love you, Emma. Please, tell me what I have to do to earn a second chance. All you have to do is name it, and I'll do it."

Emma shook her head vehemently. "No! I'm mad… I'm so fucking mad. I want to hate you. You broke my walls down. I let you in… I fucking _**let you in**_ , and you destroyed me! You made me look like a fool!"

Regina was crying. She walked over to where Emma was sitting on the couch and knelt before her. "I love you, Emma. Let me show you, let me make love to you."

"I can't make love to you, Regina," Emma said through teary green eyes that were beginning to be darkened by arousal.

The lust in Emma's eyes told Regina that the blonde wanted her, and maybe, _just maybe_ if they had sex, Emma would remember the love she had for Regina… Either way, Regina needed a release, and she knew that with everything that had gone on the past few weeks, so did Emma. They could help each other out, and perhaps in the process, it could spark something between them once more. Either way, there was only one person she'd let touch her sexually, and if Emma was willing, so was Regina because she needed the blonde's magical touch.

"Then just take me, Emma." She said as she looked up at the blonde.

Emma looked down at her with dark green eyes, she grabbed her face and murmured aggressively. "This doesn't mean I forgive you." Before forcefully pulling Regina into her lap and connecting their lips.

Regina moaned into the kiss; she knew that this wasn't a happy occasion, Emma was using this as a punishment of sorts. She wanted to dominate Regina, to show that Regina had no power over her anymore, but Regina also knew that Emma only had sex with someone if she loved them, so the fact stood that Regina still had a slight chance at winning her heart back.

Emma ripped off Regina's shirt, and bra and started kissing all over the brunette's torso harshly. She left bite marks and hickeys all over the woman's body causing Regina to moan at the slightly painful yet pleasurable sensations. The blonde pulled her head away and looked at Regina coldly before picking the older woman up and carrying her to the office where Henry and Regina had their discussion before.

Emma wiped everything off of the desk that sat in the room before laying the brunette on the desk and pulling off the black slacks.

Regina was morbidly aroused and was ready to be ravaged by the blonde, but the woman just stood there and stared.

"Beg." She said sternly.

Regina's bundle of nerves hardened and began to throb at the command. She'd never given away control of herself before; she had always wanted to -because no matter how harsh and in control, she pretended to be as the queen she had never wanted that much power. The title of Queen was forced upon her, and she had never wanted to have that role.- But she had never found anyone she was comfortable giving herself to until she met Emma. She bit back her arousal and obeyed.

"Please, Emma." She said earnestly.

Emma smirked. "Please what?" she asked.

Regina's stomach tingled in arousal. "Please, take me."

"I can't hear you," Emma said sternly.

Regina's underwear soaked through entirely. "Please. Please, Emma. Ravage me. Make me come undone, please."

Emma grinned devilishly as she yanked Regina around and bent her over the desk so that her back was to the blonde. The sheriff pulled the thong that Regina was wearing down her thighs and dropped them to her ankles. She tapped the Queen's legs with her palm. "Spread them wide" Emma commanded.

Regina submitted, she stepped out of her undergarment and spread her legs as far as they would go. Within seconds of her obedience, she felt three fingers roughly plunge into her core as a second hand pressed into her back firmly, keeping her laid flat against the desk. Regina let out a loud grunt and was eternally grateful that Emma had closed the office door.

The ministrations grew harder and harder, and pleasure was coursing through Regina's body as well as the pain. The incredible sensation of climax was building up, and her orgasm was growing closer each second. Emma's thumb came to stroke the hardened nub between Regina's folds, and Regina whimpered at the amazing pleasure Emma's fingers curled inside of Regina, hitting that sensitive spot and Regina belted out a moan as a blinding climax hit her like a freight train and took her breath away. She let out a yelp as Emma inserted a fourth finger, and worked her through her orgasm.

Once the cloud of orgiastic bliss faded, and Emma released her hand from the Queen's back Regina turned around, prepared to reciprocate the orgasm, but Emma was leaned against the wall with her hand over her mouth as tears slipped from her eyes.

Regina immediately felt a rush of panic. She "Emma? Darling, what is it? What's wrong?"

Emma shook her head as she stifled back a sob, her heart was breaking. She wanted to love Regina, she really did, but after all the hurt, she wasn't sure if the woman she loved was really Regina or a persona she had concocted to trick Emma. She loved the woman Regina had been before the curse, but she wasn't sure if she could ever trust her again. She'd been hurt too many times, lied to even more, but never had she ever been loved and never let down, and Regina had been the one that hurt her worst of them all. So, her faith in Regina was little to none. She regretted having sex with her already because it was supposed to show Regina that she didn't need her, that the brunette had no hold on her. Yet, all it did was stir up the feelings of hurt and longing she had towards Regina. "We can't do that again. Ever." She said through a sob.

Regina's heart ruptured in pain, but she nodded reluctantly. It hadn't come out the way she had hoped, but it had gotten a reaction from Emma. Maybe that was a good thing? Or was she trying too hard? "I understand." She said through the mass in her throat. "I still love you. Even if you're not mine. I'm never giving up on you."

Emma furrowed her brow. "What?"

Regina bobbed her head in affirmation. "I love you even if you're never mine again. I will always love you." She said. Trying to put her ripped shirt back onto her torso. "I'd kill for you. I'd give up everything I own for you. I'd die for you, and let someone amputate my limbs for you, but I won't give up on you, Emma. I will fight for you. I won't harass you. I won't refuse to take no for an answer, but I will work every day to prove to you that I am someone that you can trust. I will work to earn your friendship, and hopefully one day you'll give me a second chance, because there is no way in hell that I am ever giving up hope for us until you've walked down the aisle and vowed your eternal love to someone. That day is the day I will back off and resign myself to the fate of never having you as my own again. But you need to understand that I love you, I will always love you, and no matter what happens I will always be waiting for you. No one else will ever be what I want. I would give or do anything to be your everything."

Emma's heart melted, but she didn't dare believe that Regina was telling the truth, not yet. The look in the brunette's eyes was sincere, but she couldn't let her guard down. Not just yet. "Not many people would believe that." Emma croaked out.

Regina growled. "I don't care what people think. I don't care if I'm a masochist or a fool. I just want to hear you tell you that I love you. Even if you can't love me, I want to tell you that I love you. I want to earn your forgiveness, I want to earn back your trust, I want to earn back your love. I know it'll take time, I know that it will hurt, but I need you to know. I will never give up on you."

Emma wanted to believe that, she really did. But she wasn't even sure if she still loved Regina. She cared for her, sure. But love? She loved the woman she had been before, but did that woman even exist still? She sighed and shook her head. "I want to believe that, Regina. I really do, but you have to prove it, not just say it." She said. "Now, let's get showered and changed and we can discuss the wraith business."

Regina frowned but nodded in acquiescence. Emma led her to the guest bedroom where she had some more clothes that Regina had left over from her stays during their relationship and an en-suite. The blonde showed her how to use the shower, and then left to take her own.

Once they were settled, they sat in the study with a glass of apple cider each, as they discussed their plan.

**XXX**

**Two weeks later:**

Two weeks had gone by, and the wraith had been scouring the town for the former mayor for six of those days.

During those two weeks, the blonde and the brunette had been working together to find the wraith and destroy it. Although they hadn't found the phantom's hideaway before it had awoken, they had located where it went during the day while it rested. It was in the old cannery and Rumpelstiltskin had handed over control of the wraith to someone Regina had dreaded to see: _Tamara_.

he had given it to her, with the promise of her using it to Regina's magic, yet the man seemed to forget a very crucial part of the past.

She didn't just want to end Regina's magic, she intended to end ALL magic, so when the woman had seen Emma and Neal kissing, she decided that the Savior would be her first target instead.

A lot of things had happened in those two weeks:

 **1:** Emma and Regina had grown exponentially close.

 **2:** Neal had been released because Emma didn't want to deal with him fawning all over her as she worked, she had told him to leave town, and he had promised that he would, but he didn't.

 **3:** Neal had cornered Emma in the street and had kissed Emma (Something that not only pissed Regina off but caused her jealousy to spike to new heights when Emma said she kissed back because Neal had said he dumped Tamara)

 **4:** Tamara had seen the kiss after coming to Storybrooke to confront Neal about the breakup.

 **5:** Tamara had kidnapped Emma because not only did she kiss her ex-fiancée, but she was a magic wielder.

 **6:** Regina's wraith mark disappeared because Tamara had decided to mark Emma instead.

 **7:** Regina snuck into the cannery only to see Tamara electrocuting Emma the way Greg had done to her all those years ago.

Emma laid screaming out in pain as the electricity shot through her. She hated herself for kissing Neal for more reason than one. She'd been so emotionally strung out that the familiarity had just felt nice… But it wasn't right, it wasn't what she wanted, and she had pulled away seconds after the kiss was initiated and kicked the man in the groin once more. However, that wasn't the only problem with the kiss because although she was still furious with Regina, and heartbroken (perhaps enough to be beyond repair this time), she still felt bad for telling her about it. The look on Regina's face was enough to make Emma feel guilty even though they were no longer together. The third and final problem was the current crazy-ex-fiancée that had her chained to a table and was electrocuting her after every wrong answer.

"Where did you learn your magic?" The man asked.

Emma cackled. "I don't know. When your mistress knocked me out with the two-by-four, I guess it gave me amnesia."

-Electric Shock-

"Is there a way to get rid of all magic?"

Emma thought for sure she was going to break her façade and cry out because she wanted to help, she didn't want to be shocked again, but she just didn't know the fucking answer.

"I-I really don't know."

"LIAR!"

-Electric Shock-

Regina saw Emma's body strapped to a table, as Greg asked questions that Emma couldn't possibly know the answer to. She saw the evil bitch (Tamara) turn the knob and pull the lever to send waves of electricity through all of Emma's pulse points, and Regina saw red. She knew she couldn't go in defenseless, though so, as Regina sat hidden, watching Tamara torture the love of her life, tears running down her face, she thought of the only thing she could think of. _I wish my magic were working._

Emma's body froze in an arch on the table, Tamara's mouth stopped moving, and the sounds of electricity flowing through the wires stopped. Regina sighed in relief, and within seconds, Blue showed up.

"You know that I can't grant you that wish, Regina," Blue said apologetically.

"Then how do I save her!?" Regina asked angrily.

"You have to distract Tamara, and then have Emma take off the bracelet," Blue said.

"She doesn't know how to use magic well enough to escape a simple restraint and free herself! There's no way she's going to know how to take off my magic prohibiting bracelet!" Regina yelled.

Reul frowned. "That's the first thing she asked me to teach her." The nun admitted. "As soon as Mary Margaret introduced us, that was the first thing she asked."

Regina went wide-eyed. "Why?" She whispered.

Mother Superior shrugged her shoulders. "She wanted to make sure that you didn't get trapped in a situation that she couldn't save you from. She wanted to make sure that you were safe even though she didn't trust you."

Regina's heart melted. The love she had for that woman grew even stronger than it had ever been. "I love her." She whimpered as she gazed over to the woman she loved and saw the facial expression of pure pain. "I wish I could save her from this. I wish I could switch her places." Regina said with tears in her eyes.

Reul frowned. "those are all wishes I can't grant." She said sadly. "But you can still have her remove the bracelet."

Regina glared at her. "She's most likely got a concussion from the two-by-four in the head that Tamara gave her when she knocked her out to kidnap her! Not only that, but I don't know how long she's been torturing her before I found her!"

Blue frowned. "Well, there's always one other way, but you have to be sure it would work or else you'll be damned too."

Regina furrowed her brows. "Anything."

Blue looked at her with a very serious face before saying the obvious (that wasn't quite obvious to Regina.)

"Kiss her."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I definitely want to know what you think!**


	18. Chapter 18

"Kiss her?!" Regina asked in disbelief. "She kissed Neal, Reul. She's chosen him."

The fairy sighed. "She may have kissed him, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Emma has made up her mind. Just like if you kissed her, and it took off your bracelet that doesn't necessarily mean that you are the one she chooses yet, she may love you again, but that doesn't mean that she chooses you or forgives you for everything that you've done quite yet."

Regina's heart filled with hope once more as she nodded in understanding. "So, what do I do? Try to distract the two idiots, ask Emma for a kiss, and hope for the best?"

Reul laughed. "I suppose you could put it that way, but if the kiss doesn't work, you could always try to wheel her out of the building and to her house before Greg and Tamara come back."

Regina pondered her options and nodded in agreement. "I can't let that wraith get to her before I can activate the hat. The only way I can activate it is with magic."

Reul nodded. "So either get the bracelet off with True Love's kiss because it's really just a physical curse or wheel Emma out of this godforsaken building and get her to safety. Is Henry home?"

Regina nodded.

"Good, then have him on standby just in case."

Regina did as she was told and sent a text to her son that he would receive as soon as time continued. "I just, I don't think I can keep going much longer… She hasn't forgiven me, and I don't think she ever will." The regal brunette admitted, earning her a look of disappointment from the fairy.

"I really don't know how you trust someone again once they've lost your trust. It's like starting back at square one and having to work twenty times harder. Don't _expect_ her to forgive you. That's not her responsibility; it's yours to warn it back. Do everything you can to show her you're sorry and be grateful when and if she does. You broke her trust, and she is under no obligation or time limit to give it back. It's up to you to earn it. You cost her a lifetime of love and happiness, you had sex with her when you knew darn well that it was wrong without telling her the truth, and you lied to her about who you were for over three months. She isn't obligated to trust you. She's only human and has human emotions. She has trust issues because of the constant abandonment, and you know that, so if you ever want a chance with Emma again, you will keep fighting for her until she _does_ make her choice."

Regina knew that the fairy was right, so she hiked up her big girl panties and decided to go to the control room and switch off the electricity, that would buy them at least five minutes.

She made her way through the building searching for the fuse box. As she walked through the building, she saw a greenish glow coming from behind a door; she opened it out of curiosity to find the wraith-like monster hanging from the ceiling much similar to the way bats do. It had black papery looking skin and had newly reformed wings. _Did he really mix a wraith and a bat together?_ She asked herself. She assessed the room further to find that the green light that was being emitted was from the wraith medallion, but it was a bit larger and had specs of green encrusted over the mark. She decided to steal the locket, carefully scooping it up inside an empty can and slamming the lid on it before slamming the door shut and breaking off the doorknob to hopefully contain the wraith.

When she found the fuse box, she flipped all of the switches off (and even broke a few off so they couldn't turn them back on) and ran back to meet Reul. "Okay, they won't be able to torture her without electricity." She said breathlessly.

Mother Superior smiled proudly. "Atta girl, just wait until you're sure they're out of earshot before you run up to her."

Regina rolled her eyes. "I'm not a fool, bug."

The fairy shook her head. "This is why I don't like you." She said. "Your snark is relentless."

Regina chuckled. "If you didn't like me, you wouldn't be doing all of this for me right now."

Blue sighed. "True, but just because I'm doing this doesn't mean I am your biggest fan. Maybe I'm just an Emma Swan fan?"

Regina laughed. "Everyone is an Emma Swan fan if they aren't then they're complete imbeciles."

Reul smiled and waved her wand. Seconds later, Emma was screaming out in pain for a few more seconds before everything went black and the only light left was the emergency light that ran off of the small generator.

Regina smirked in victory.

"What the hell!?" Tamara screamed.

"We should go check on that," Greg ordered.

"No, we can't leave her alone, what if someone finds her?" Tamara chided.

The man shook his head. "No one would be expecting us to hide here. No one can hear us; we're safe. Plus, we have the keys to the chains restraining her, so there isn't really anywhere for them to take her."

Tamara looked uncertain but eventually acquiesced to his suggestion. They left the room, and Regina sprung into action. She jumped up and ran to Emma's side. "Emma!" She whispered.

Emma opened her eyes and looked confusedly at the brunette. "R'gina?"

Regina swallowed back tears as she smiled in relief and nodded. "Yes, sweetheart, It's me. I'm here."

Emma looked mortified as she shook her head. "No! You've got to get out of here! You have to leave!"

Regina furrowed her brow as her heart began to sink. "What? Why!?"

"B-because they're coming for you next. They're working for Mr. Gold, R'gina. Y-you've got to go. Take Henry and leave town. Let them have at me; it'll distract them."

Regina felt tears in her eyes. "Emma, you know I can't do that."

"Y-yes you can. I'm trapped, Gina. I can't leave. They've got the keys in their pockets. You've got to let them take me to save Henry."

"Emma, if you get my bracelet off of me, I can save you," Regina said in a voice thick from tears. The amount of love Emma was showing for Henry, and her willingness to die for him would never stop astounding her.

"I-I can't. t-too weak. Go, Gina. Save our son."

Regina couldn't do this. She needed to kiss Emma and hope that it would save them. "Emma, I have the Mad Hatter's hat. I have everything I need to save us all, and I see the wraith sleeping in a room by itself, I locked it in, and stole its medallion. All I need is my magic and you can give it to me." She said desperately. "I'm not leaving you, Emma. I'm not leaving you because I can't live without you. I can raise Henry without you, and I refuse to do either. So, you've got to let me save you." She cried out.

"H-how? I'm t-too weak."

Regina leaned in. "You have to give me permission to kiss you." She murmured.

Emma swallowed nervously, and Regina took that as a sign that Emma wasn't ready to forgive and forget just yet, but she heard footsteps coming from down the hall, and she needed Emma's kiss. "Emma, it's okay if you love me but don't want to be with me, all I need is a kiss so that I can break us out of here. I don't have much time; I can hear them coming. Please, Emma. Let me kiss you."

Emma nodded her consent, and Regina leaned the rest of the way down and connected their lips. Emma's lips didn't move, which was incredibly disheartening, but then there was a surge of magic that spread through them both, and Regina felt hope that Emma might eventually choose her. She felt hope, but she also felt exuberance as the bracelet fell off, and her magic swam through her for the first time in almost a month. She put the offending piece of jewelry into her pocket. Once the magic was completely throughout her body once again, Regina stretched her arms and cracked her fingers before releasing the chains from Emma's wrists and ankles. She then turned to the door and waited for the two kidnappers to enter the room, when they did, they saw her and glared.

"Hey! Stop!" Tamara yelled before Regina aimed her hand towards the woman and magically threw her against the wall.

Tamara hit the wall with her back, with a loud thud before dropping to the floor and coughing as she tried to get air back into her lungs.

"That's for torturing the woman I love, bitch." She snarled before conjuring up handcuffs on the woman's wrists. She turned to the man who was shaking in his boots. "YOU!" She growled before pinning him to the wall.

"Regina, p-please." She heard from the behind her. That caused her to freeze. She turned around and looked at Emma with horror filling every pore in her body.

"E-Emma I swear I'm just-"

Emma shook her head. "It's okay. Just handcuff him, Gina. I just want to sleep."

Regina nodded and magicked handcuffs onto Greg's hands before teleporting all four of them to the Jail.

Emma locked them both in separate solitary confinement cells in the back of the station (The ones she had been putting Leroy in when he was drunk) and then collapsed to the floor. "EMMA!" Regina yelled as she rushed to the blonde's side.

Regina tried to lift the blonde up but wasn't strong enough to do so. The only thing she could do was teleport them somewhere, but she knew if she set foot in public there would be a whole mob after her head and she didn't want to have to hurt anyone to save herself. If she did that, she might lose Henry's renewed faith in her, so she teleported them to Emma's home and pounded on the door and waited for Henry to open it for them.

Henry's eyes widened as he saw his blonde mother's limp body in Regina's lap. "Henry, I need you to get me a blanket so that we can lay her on it and drag her inside, okay? But you need to hurry." She said as calmly as she could manage.

The ten-year-old nodded with wide eyes as he obeyed his mother's request and was back within thirty seconds.

They laid Emma down gently onto the blanket, and Henry held the doorknob so that Regina could enter the house with Emma in tow. They managed to get her onto the couch and Regina used a bit of her magic to heal Emma as much as she could. Luckily, during the time it had been restrained, her magic regained some strength, it was nothing like it could be, but it was much better than it had been when she first arrived in the past.

"Henry, darling. Now that you both are safe, I have to take care of something really quickly. I will be back shortly." Regina said.

Henry nodded. "Okay."

**XXX**

Regina teleported herself to the library, where Belle was sure to be. She landed right in the middle of it, and before Belle had the chance to scream, Regina raised her hands. "I come in peace. I'm just here trying to protect the love of my life. Okay?" She asked.

Belle furrowed her brow. "How did you get free? What on Earth could you want from me?" She asked coldly. "To lock me up for another three decades?"

Regina shook her head. "Rumple has been coming after Emma and I. All I ask is that you use this bracelet on him. It'll prevent him from hurting anyone else. He marked me for a wraith, but then handed over possession of it to two people who want to eradicate magic all together. We've apprehended them, but Rumple still has plans, plans that I want to foil before he can hurt anyone else.

Belle pondered on everything, and then looked at Regina. "I'm not saying that I trust you, but I don't trust Rumple, and I want his magic to be depleted so I will put the bracelet on him, but only because Blue and Emma have magic that can destroy yours if anything goes wrong."

Regina nodded eagerly and handed her the bracelet.

"Get under the desk" Bell ordered as she searched the shelves an picked out a book. She turned around and handed Regina the story.

Regina looked at the book and saw that it was a book about wraiths. The queen smiled and did as she was told, and watched as Belle called for Rumple. He appeared moments later and pulled Belle into a kiss. When Belle grabbed his hands, he smiled, and then moments later, the bracelet was locked around his wrist and a look of utter betrayal spread across his cheeks. "I'm sorry, Rumple." Belle cried in her thick accent. "I love you, but I can't let you keep hurting people."

When Regina was satisfied, she teleported herself back to Emma's house and knocked on the door as she waited for Henry to allow her entrance.

**XXX**

Henry and Regina talked about everything that had happened. Regina explained everything, then she had made him some pancakes, played a few rounds of monopoly, and four hours later, Henry was upstairs once again playing XBOX online with his friends when Emma awoke groggily. Her eyes flitted open, and she looked at Regina with awe in her eyes. "Your magic-"

"I can put the bracelet back on. It's no problem at all." Regina interrupted in a rush of utter panic.

Emma shook her head. "Your magic is white." She said. "Not black or purple like Evil people."

Regina's heart pounded in her chest as her level of hope continued to rise. She nodded. "Yes."

"You're not Evil anymore."

Regina shrugged her shoulders nervously. "I'm not sure." She said. "I want to be good, not just for you and Henry, but for myself as well. I hated being evil."

Emma furrowed her brows. She was still weak, and her voice was strained terribly, but she still seemed persistent on getting the facts. Regina had no objections to telling her the truth, however. She hoped more than anything that these facts would get Emma to choose her over Neal.

She took a deep breath and hoped that her story would help Emma understand, not necessarily forgive her. "When I was a young girl, my mother despised me. My father loved me, but he wasn't strong enough to stop my mother's abuse because she was magical. She beat me, trapped me in closets, made me go days without food, and beat into my head that I could never be loved. Eventually, I started trying to run away, but she always caught me, and always punished me more severely each time.

When I was 16 I met a boy named Daniel, he was unlike any other and I fell in love with him. He wasn't in it for the money, or for the power, he loved me for who I genuinely was. He proposed, I said yes, but my mother wanted me to marry your grandfather." She paused and closed her eyes, she knew that Emma had already been told this part, but she had to go through this part in order to get to the rest. "I had planned on running away with Daniel and wedding him, but I told your mother, who was ten years old, about Daniel, and she promised to keep it a secret. But my manipulative and powerful mother worked her magic on Snow and got her to tell her what was happening.

Mother didn't like my plans, found us, stopped us, tricked us, and killed Daniel right in my arms. I couldn't get over my grief, I allowed my mother to force me into marriage with Leopold, and he wasn't cruel or hateful to me, but I still wasn't happy. He wasn't my Daniel.

Eventually, I met Rumpelstiltskin, and he played his mind games and convinced me to kill my father, and then Leopold, and then I went after your mother, and every time I failed at an attempt to kill Snow, I got angrier and killed more and more people.

I know that blaming your mother was pathetic, and illogical, and the only person I have to blame for my evil doings was myself, but I had been so alone, for so long, and Rumple said that he cared about me, so I let myself fall into his spell and turned myself evil. Yet that was also a trick. I never wanted to be the Queen, let alone the Evil Queen, and I regret everything that I have done. I know no number of apologies will excuse what I've done. No amount of time will make up for what I did, but I hope that you can someday see me as more than the Evil Queen, and see me as the Regina you fell in love with once more."

Emma stared at her, tears streaming down her face. "No one deserves a past like that." She said.

Regina swallowed the lump in her throat. "Sadly, some have them. You and I both had terrible lives, and I am so, very sorry that my mistakes cost you a life with your family. I'm so sorry, Emma. If I could give you everything you deserved, I'd give it all to you, but I can't, and I'm so, so, sorry."

Emma looked Regina in the eyes. "You saved my life today." She said bluntly.

Regina nodded. "Only because I was stupid enough to cast a curse that damned us all to this invisible town in the land without magic."

Emma glared at her. "You saved my life today."

Regina furrowed her brows but nodded. "Yes."

"You did it because you didn't want me to die."

Regina nodded. "Yes."

"Because you love me."

Regina swallowed. "Yes." She murmured.

"Not because you need me for the town and Henry to accept you again."

"No," Regina said breathlessly as hope climbed into her chest and began to suffocate her.

"That True Love's kiss was real?"

"Yes." The brunette said as she nodded vehemently.

"And you truly reformed yourself and no longer wish death or misery upon everyone inside this town?"

"Yes," Regina said, which was answered by Emma placing her hand atop of Regina's. Regina's heart pounded in anticipation. God she hoped she was answering these the way Emma wanted them answered. "All I want is to feel at peace with the world. I want to live happily, and without confrontation and wars."

Emma tried to sit up, and Regina helped her. "I believe you." She declared, causing Regina to smile brighter than she had since Emma broke up with her.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I hope you enjoyed, this chapter was difficult to write. Please let me know what you thought.**


	19. Chapter 19

Relief over swept Regina’s body as she let out a breath she hadn’t known she had been holding. “You do?”

Emma nodded. “Yes, I do, but I still have questions, right now, though, I am sore and tired. Could we put a pin in this conversation for after I get some more rest?” The sheriff pleaded.

Regina nodded. “Yes! Yes, of course, we can!” Regina said with delight.

Emma smiled weakly. “Goodnight, Gina.”

Regina’s heart melted at how soft, and sweet Emma said her nickname. “Goodnight, Emma.” She murmured.

As soon as Emma’s breathing evened out, signaling that she had fallen asleep, Regina slowly got up off of the couch and went to check on Henry. She heard the sound of his laughter, and the noise from his game and smiled as she decided to let him enjoy his game.

The Queen walked into the office room where she Emma had dominated her and sat down at the desk. She took out the book that Belle had given her from her coat pocket and started to examine thoroughly. The book was old and decrepit, bound in black leather with a red silk bookmark attached to the binding. On the cracked, dry and dusty cover, the title was written in Italian; _La Guida ai Demoni Che Succhiano L’anima_  which translated to: _The Guide to Soul Sucking Demons._

She opened the old book, and it smelled warm and musty, like the inside of a closed off attic. The friable pages were threatening to break from any rash movement from the former queen. She thumbed through page after page, drinking in all the information she possibly could about wraiths, when she finally, mid-way through the book, found what she was looking for:

**Come distruggere il demone:**

Esistono pochi modi per far sì che una cosa così complessa avvenga. Uno di questi sarebbe combinare le abilità magiche di due Veri Amori per distruggere il sacro Medaglione del Wraith

Which in English, translated to:

**How to destroy the demon:**

There are a few ways to make something, so complex happen. One of which, would be to combine the magical abilities of two true loves to destroy the sacred Medallion of the wraith.

Regina fist pumped the air, thrilled to have finally found a way to save the woman that owned her affections when she heard the office door creak open. She lifted her head to see that the intruder was the woman she had just been searching for ways to save. “Emma! Awake so soon?” She asked.

The corner of Emma’s lips raised slightly as she nodded. “It’s three in the morning.” She chuckled.

Regina looked at the clock in the room and was stunned to see that the blonde was right. “I’ve been reading for five hours??”

Emma laughed as she sat in one of the chairs. “I guess so.”

Regina frowned, Emma still looked slightly ill… Almost cadaverous, really. Her skin was ashen, her eyes looked hollow, and she was curled in on herself. She was incredibly weak, almost to the point of passing out, but even looking like that, she was still the most beautiful woman Regina had ever, and could ever lay eyes on. To Regina, Emma was the most gorgeous woman in all the realms. “Are you feeling better?”

Emma nodded. “A bit, still walking on Styrofoam it feels like.”

Regina nodded. “I remember that feeling.” She said before she could stop herself.

“You’ve been electrocuted before too?” Emma asked with wide and concerned eyes.

Regina had a small panic attack, she couldn’t tell Emma about the time reversal, or it would ruin everything, and that would be the most devastating outcome the former queen could ever imagine. However, she didn’t want to lie to the blonde, so she waved a dismissive hand. “Years ago, I really don’t want to get into that discussion.” She said, feeling guilt that Emma had been forced to replace her on that metal torture gurney.

Emma frowned but seemed to acquiesce to Regina’s plea for discretion. “So, um… I just wanted to thank you, for you know… saving my life…” The savior started awkwardly.

Regina melted at the familiar awkward manner of the blonde and smiled adoringly at the sheriff. “It was either save you or die in the process of trying. To me, there were no other choices.”

Emma seemed touched by that, but also seemed to be disturbed. “That means so much to me.” She started. “But I couldn’t live with myself knowing that you died because of me.” She admitted. “Your life has meaning too.

Regina smiled. “You are my life, Emma.”

The blonde beauty seemed put back by Regina’s confession, but smiled uncomfortably and spoke again. “I was wondering if we could... y’know… finish that conversation from earlier.”

The former mayor stood up from the chair behind Emma’s desk and walked over to the armchair that sat opposite the blonde. She smiled nervously and nodded. “Anything you want.” She said shakily.

Emma smiled an appreciative smile and averted her eyes nervously. “You said that Leopold… Snow’s father; wasn’t mean or cruel, but you still killed him. That doesn’t make much sense to me. I want the truth, I can tell you’re holding something back, something you think would benefit me somehow, but I refuse to know anything but the truth, Regina.” She said earnestly. She shook her head and sighed defeatedly. “I don’t know what to do about you…” She admitted, causing Regina’s heart to fly up into her throat.

Regina’s heart pounded mercilessly inside her while anxiety and fear grew insurmountable. She attempted to swallow the lump in her throat as she tried to speak. “W-what do you mean?” She asked in a nervous whisper.

“I mean that I’m crazy about you, Regina. I’m absolutely insane for you, but it’s hard to trust you, I want to, especially after you saved my life… I want to trust you so badly, but I don’t know how to when I know you’re hiding things from me.”

Regina’s heart returned to her ribcage, and she took a deep breath. “I’m not hiding it from you to betray you, Emma. I’m hiding it from you to protect you. If I tell you, it’ll be my word against your mother’s, and you’ll be caught in the crosshairs.”

Emma furrowed her brow. “Regina, if your side is the truth, I can tell. I trust my Lie Detector with you now. You just have to be completely honest. Why did you kill Leopold?”

Regina gulped. “I didn’t actually kill him… I… had someone else do it for me. I was jealous because Snow was getting all of her father’s attention, so I wrote in my journal that I was falling for a man that presented me with a mirror, knowing that the King would read it, and in hopes that it would make him jealous and spend more time with me. I was trapped in a castle that I didn’t want to be in, in a marriage that he and my mother forced upon me. I didn’t love him; I was just lonely. I tried to be the wife that he wanted, and even then, no one would pay attention to me. It was all about Snow White. The diary didn’t do exactly as I had hoped. It incited fury in him instead, and he ordered the Genie (who he had just come to know and the man who had given me the mirror) to find the man that had given me the looking glass. The Genie pretended to agree but had no intention of actually helping him. I let the Genie think that I was in love with him, and played him like a fiddle. My father soon showed up and gave him a box telling him that it was the only thing that could set me free. Genie brought the box to me in the tower that Leopold had me locked away in.”

Regina paused and refused to make eye contact with the blonde woman in fear of seeing a look of disgust on her beautiful face. She took a deep breath and continued once Emma’s hand reached out and landed on her knee. That gave her enough courage to finish the story. “Once the Genie arrived in my tower, I opened the chest and revealed two Agrabahn Vipers, and pretended as though I was going to commit suicide by letting them bite me. He refused to let me ‘kill myself’ and said that there was another way for me to be happy, the death of the King. I, of course, pretended to be shocked, and thankful, but this had been my plan all along. I allowed him to finish off the King, and then when he came back, expecting me to welcome him with the love I had promised him, I told him that the guards knew who killed the king because the snakes were from his country. He called me out on the lies, and I told him that I had used him and that I never loved him. I ordered him to go, he said that he couldn’t live without me and refused to leave without me. I practically laughed in his face, but then out of desperateness, he wished on the lamp to be by my side forever, and the Genie lamp turned him into my mirror.”

Regina felt tears trickle down her cheeks. Until she heard Emma’s gentle voice speak. “You did that out of vulnerability as well, Regina. You felt trapped, and you tried your hardest to escape.”

Regina looked up in shock. “You don’t think that it was evil?”

Emma pursed her lips. “I don’t think that it was right, I think you could have avoided toying with the Genie’s emotions, but I don’t really see another way out of that marriage besides Leopold’s death either. He forced a child into a marriage… That’s basically rape.”

Regina shook her head vehemently. “He never raped me. He married me because he wanted a mother for Snow White.”

Emma sighed. “Even so, he should have found a more age appropriate fill-in for her. Using a child only eight years older than his daughter was a bad call on his part.”

Regina chuckled and nodded. “That is something we can both agree on.”

Emma smiled sadly. “I’m sorry you had to go through all of that. I can’t even imagine how devastating that felt, but I do understand loneliness.”

Regina frowned. “Yes, because of me.”

Emma frowned. “Yes, I suppose so… but.”

Regina shook her head to stop Emma. “Don’t.” She said sternly. “Don’t say you forgive me. You don’t, we both know it, you just feel bad and think that’s the right thing for you to say. But it isn’t, you aren’t obligated to forgive me for giving you a terrible life just because I had my own terrible life. I want your forgiveness, Emma. More than anything, but I don’t want it just because you feel like you owe it to me. You don’t owe me anything; you aren’t obligated to give it to me just because I saved your life. You have a lot to work out, so when you and if you are ready to grant me your forgiveness, I will accept. Until then, however, don’t offer it to me.”

Emma sighed. “Well, I was going to say that I don’t understand why you think this would cause problems between Snow and I.”

Regina felt a blush creep up her neck and stain her cheeks. “Oh, I… I misread where this conversation was going,” Regina said embarrassedly.

Emma smiled fondly. “It seems like you did.”

Regina cleared her throat and got back on topic. “I said that you would get caught in the middle because Snow believes Leopold to be a saint. Instead of a neglectful man who used his wife as a nurse, maid, and babysitter for his daughter. He wasn’t evil or cruel to me, but he didn’t love me the way he loved his first wife. He never would, and he wouldn’t and couldn’t treat me the way a woman deserved to be treated.”

Emma frowned. “Well, she’s an asshole if she doesn’t see it. I get that he is her father and everything, but misogyny is misogyny, and abuse is abuse, and they both deserve to be called out no matter who it comes from.”

Regina’s heart swelled; Emma was on _her_ side. That right there was enough to make her want to jump up on the desk and dance. “Really?”

“Yeah, Regina. Of course, because no one, should be disrespected like that. He trapped you, and he knew it. He trapped you, forced you to be the person he desired you to be, and then threw the responsibility of parenthood on you without even knowing if you were ready for that type of commitment. You were just a child, and he abused you emotionally.”

Regina smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Emma answered with a genuine smile. “Now what were you reading?”

“Oh! I um… I stopped by the library earlier, and I got Belle to put the magic restraint on Rumple.”

Emma’s eyes darkened, and Regina gulped. She wasn’t sure if that was lust or anger in her eyes, and she wasn’t quite sure which one she was more scared of at the moment. “I see, but that doesn’t tell me what you’re reading,” Emma said with a grin as her eyes cleared, causing Regina to deflate with relief.

“Well, dear, if you’d let me finish explaining, you would know.”

Emma chuckled. “Sorry, sorry. Go ahead, and explain, _Dear_.” She said mockingly.

Regina grinned as she went to pick up the book. “Well, you see, when I was talking to Belle, I mentioned the wraith, and before she summoned Rumple, she gave me a guidebook to Wraiths… with all the information you could possibly need about them.”

Emma looked intrigued as Regina sat on the arm of the blonde’s chair and showed the younger woman what the book held. “It says here, that if two True loves merge their magic and destroy the Wraith’s medallion, then the wraith will evaporate right along with it.”

Emma looked up at Regina and beamed. “We can get rid of the Wraith and the mark on my arm?” She asked excitedly.

Regina nodded with a smile. “We sure can.”

“This is amazing! We can save the town and then we can prove to the townspeople that you aren’t evil. At least, not anymore. Then we can b-“ Emma cut herself off as her eyes grew wide in surprise.

Regina’s interest piqued at that; she needed to know what the blonde was saying. “Then we can, _what_ , Emma?” She asked cautiously.

“Nothing. Just… nothing.” The blonde said anxiously.

“Oh, it was something, or you would have finished that train of thought.” Regina urged. “Please, Emma. You can tell me anything. It’s okay.”

Emma looked at Regina and sighed. “Then we can be together again,” Emma said with a gulp. “Because I love you, and you _are_ the Regina I fell in love with and I just… I can’t pretend that I don’t just desperately want to hold you.” The savior said, causing butterflies to develop inside Regina’s stomach.

“B-but what about everything I’ve done to you? Everything I caused?” The queen asked in a shaky whisper as she crossed the room to put space between them. She couldn’t handle this false hope.

Emma shook her head. “That wasn’t _you_. That was the Evil Queen, and you aren’t the Evil Queen… not anymore.” The blonde said as she walked across the room and stood inches away from Regina. “You’re Regina Mills, Mayor of Storybrooke, Mother of Henry Mills, and… well, True Love of Emma Swan.”

Regina’s heart pounded in her chest. She wanted to believe this was real, that this wasn’t just a dream, but she didn’t dare hope for something so marvelous to actually be happening. “ _Emma_ ” Regina pleaded through tears of joy and hope.

Emma smiled, she closed the distance between her and Regina and connected their lips in a passionate kiss. Regina was so shocked and so thrilled that the wind nearly left her lungs. Regina barely had a moment to comprehend what was going on before she felt Emma’s tongue graze across the seam of her lips, begging for entrance. Regina eagerly granted Emma access and felt the blonde’s tongue probe into her mouth; exploring every inch of the brunette’s mouth. Regina moaned at the feeling of Emma re-investigating her mouth. She had missed this feeling so terribly, and all she wanted to do was relish the moment for as long as she could.

As their tongue and lips danced together, melodiously, slowly, passionately, and amorously; euphoria spread through Regina’s entire body buzzing her magic like no other. The kiss ignited her desire for the blonde, and she pulled the woman she loved closer, she needed all of her. Being that close to Emma, and feeling the other woman in her arms made her feel complete; she felt more alive than she had ever felt before.

They pulled back after the need for oxygen became unbearable, and rested their foreheads against one another. “ _Wow._ ” Regina breathed.

Emma chuckled. “Yeah, wow.”

They stayed that way, holding each other for a few more moments before Regina’s insecurities kicked in. “This is real, am I right? You want this? Want… _me?”_

Emma nodded. “I want you, Regina.”

Regina melted back into Emma for a few more seconds before memories of Emma mentioning a kiss she shared with Neal. “B-but what about Neal?” She asked

“What about him?” Emma questioned with furrowed brows.

“Y-you kissed him just under twenty-four hours ago. Are you not in love with him? Didn’t you choose _him_?”

Emma cackled as she wrapped her arms around Regina’s neck. “I’m in love with you, Regina.”

Regina smiled for a moment, taking comfort in knowing that Emma was still in love with her, but still needing to hear the woman say that she was choosing her, not Neal. She needed to hear that statement come from the blonde’s lips instead of it just being insinuated or she would never believe it wholeheartedly. “Then why did you kiss him?”

Emma sighed and pulled away from Regina, causing the brunette to instantly miss the woman’s touch. “Because he kissed me first, and since he said he broke up with Tamara I felt it was okay to kiss him. I needed something comforting and familiar, and that’s what he was. He was comforting and familiar, and he’s a decent kisser, and I care about him more than I should, but he isn’t _you._ ” Emma said sincerely as she looked into Regina’s eyes, causing the queen to get lost in orbs that were the glimmering color of emerald, shining like a fresh sheen of morning dew.

“So, you wanted him to be more like me?” She asked.

Emma shook her head. “Regina. You’re not getting it. I don’t want _him_ to be _like_ you. I wanted you. I don’t want him. I want you, I love you; I _choose_ you.”

Regina’s heart beat sped up. “Y-you choose me? Over Neal?”

Emma nodded with a bright smile as she leaned in and kissed Regina once more. “Yes, you dope. I love you, and I choose you over Neal. It was never even a contest.”

Elation filled Regina from the bottom of her feet to the top of her skull at Emma’s declaration. She leaned in and kissed Emma soundly once more, and at that moment, time froze, a strong wind picked up in the middle of the house as everything started disappearing and being engulfed by blackness. “W-what the hell?!?” Regina yelled as Emma vanished into the unknown darkness.

"NO!! EMMA!" She screamed as her throat tightened from unshed tears.Soon, everything was black around Regina, and she couldn't even see her hand as she placed it right in front of her face. All the former mayor knew for sure was that the wind was taking her somewhere, somewhere that she didn’t want to be because Emma was not there also. She had no idea what was going on, not only was she terrified, but heartbroken as well. Had this all just been a game to Blue? Would this not make any difference at all? Was this all fake, and some form of a sick revenge that Blue had wanted to get?

 

She cried at the thought, knowing full well that if she awoke only to find Emma married to the one-handed, alcoholic, and chauvinist pig, she wouldn't survive it. Not after everything that had gone on. After thirty more seconds, she felt herself dropping, but then it was as if gravity no longer had hold of her, and she was floating in the middle of all the nothingness.

Fear crept into her veins like an icy demon; her heart started throbbing; her stomach contorted and then it began to feel as if an invisible person was trying to smother her.

 

Moments later the blackness cleared away, and Regina was right back to the fateful day that she had been dreading; she was back on that dreadful rooftop, Emma standing in front of Hook with a smile on her face, and the god-awful dress draping over her body.

Regina’s heart sank as she let out a sob. “ _No,_ she said she chose me. What’s going on?”

As soon as the words spilled from Regina’s lips, a cloud of blue dust conjured up, and when the fog dissipated, there stood Blue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Big cliffhanger. I definitely know that. What do you think the outcome will be? :) ******


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I hope this clears everything up! :) ******

As soon as Blue appeared Regina flung fireballs at the woman’s direction. “YOU!” She screamed tearfully as the fairy successfully dodged them without effort. “YOU MADE ME BELIEVE THAT SHE COULD ACTUALLY LOVE ME! BUT SHE CAN’T, CAN SHE!? SHE LOVES **_HIM!_** ” She finished by spitting the last word out like a poison she refused to swallow. Fury and heartache were overcoming her. She looked at the frozen form of the love of her life staring adoringly at the pirate in front of her and felt her heart crack in agony. It was all over. She’d never win the blonde’s heart, and never get a real opportunity to hold the blonde in her arms, or kiss the sheriff under the stars. She’d never get to love her the way the blonde deserved.

Blue looked sympathetically at the brunette. “NO! Regina, that’s not at all what I did!” She said as calmly as she could.

Regina looked at Reul with a scoff full of utter disbelief. “Then why am I here? You told me that if she chose me that I wouldn’t be back here to be forced to watch her marry this imbecile.”

Reul shook her head. “No, I said that if she chose you over _both_ men, that she wouldn’t marry anyone in front of you. I never once stated that you wouldn’t be brought back here. Plus, she didn’t choose you over both of the others. She chose you over Neal, she didn’t get a fair chance to choose you over Killian, and she couldn’t after you showed her that all you two would have to do was destroy the Medallion together to get rid of the wraith. Emma would have refused to let you to activate the hat and open the portal to suck the wraith through when you could have just safely destroyed the medallion and not risked anyone’s life. Meaning no one would have fallen in, and your mother would still be unaware of how to get to you. No Cora equals no Hook, and no Hook equals no Emma and Killian. Which leads to an unfair advantage from your position. The curse refused to give anyone the upper hand unfairly. You all had to win her heart fair, and square or the spell would not work.”

Regina’s mind was swirling with not only aggravation towards the fairy’s technicalities, but also, confusion, fury, and curiosity. “What the hell do you mean, bug?” She spat out. “Hook didn’t show up, and he once again wins Emma’s heart without any effort at all? He gets to have what he wants without even working for it all over again?”

Blue looked at the woman with empathy and shrugged her shoulders.

Regina cackled humorlessly. “Of course, he does, why wouldn’t he? He was forgiven by the entire town without putting in any exertion to apologize. I know I did horrendous things that not even a pirate would dream of, but he still was a villain, yet he was never treated like one. He got his happy ending without even working a day for it, yet here I am, forty years after doing my last horrible crime, and watching my happy ending be stolen by a man who never deserves to smile again, yet he gets to marry the reason for mine.”

Mother Superior walked over to Regina and shocked the Queen by enveloping her in a hug. “I’m sorry, Regina. I’m so, terribly sorry.”

When the nun pulled away, Regina wiped the tears that fell from her eyes and down her cheeks and smiled sadly. “No,” Regina said as she shook her head melancholily. “I’m sorry. I wasted your time by not being honest from the very beginning. If I had listened to your advice, we most likely wouldn’t be here, or at least under different circumstances.”

“Either way, Regina, I hate that man with a burning passion. He has no right to the happiness he is about to gain today.” The fairy declared sternly. “He doesn’t deserve that Savior.”

Regina chuckled. “Neither do I. I stole thousands of lives and happy endings. What makes me deserve one of my own?”

The fairy frowned, the woman before her was one of the two strongest and most influential women she had ever met (Emma was undoubtedly the other) and it was unsettling to see the brunette so down and hopeless. “You’ve done more, given more, and shared more for and with Emma than he ever has. If anyone deserves her, it’s you.”

Regina wished more than anything that the nun was right, but she knew deep down that she wasn’t. “I may have given more than others, but I’ve taken much more away than I could ever repay her. I’ve taken more from anyone than I could ever repay no matter how long I live.”

“Well, that isn’t true, Dear. You’ve taken nothing. It was your other half that did all the taking.”

Regina scoffed. “Even if that were true, it’s my fault for allowing Rumple and Mother to bring her out.” Regina watched as Blue opened her mouth to disagree with her, but shook her head to interrupt the fairy. “Just let time resume so that I can watch my world fall apart once more. I’m tired of hoping for happiness when I knew that I had already lost my chance with Emma. I was so close, but I messed it all up. Just like I always do.” Regina stiffened her shoulders and feigned indifference, but in reality, she couldn’t wait for this day to be over so that she could drink herself into a coma alone in her mansion.

Reul obeyed, and within seconds the wedding was resuming, and Blue was in her dress a few rows behind Regina watching the ceremony with the rest of the crowd.

The ceremony had passed quickly with half-assed vows from both parties. Archie had talked much more than necessary -only to prolong Regina’s torment she was sure- and finally, the most essential part of the entire service was there… and Regina had to close her eyes in order to hold in her moans of agony and her tears. She then felt a hand squeeze her bicep.

“Are you okay, Sis?” Zelena whispered.

Regina swallowed the lump in her throat and forced a fake smile upon her lips and nodded as she looked to her redheaded sister.

The older Mills smiled with a nod and then returned her attention to the wedding.

Regina followed suit and watched as she heard the dreaded words fall from Archie’s mouth. “Do you Killian Jones, take unto thee Emma Swan to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death **do** you part?”

Regina held her breath, hoping that Killian’s death would hurry and do them all part… Unfortunately, Regina couldn’t get that lucky, and instead, Regina’s heart was set on fire with jealousy, and envy as the man said his next words.

“I do.” He said with an arrogant smile as he roughly slid the ring onto Emma’s finger. As Regina watched the man slide the bland ring onto the elegant and perfect finger of the equally as elegant and beautiful woman, she let out a pained whimper, which caused Henry to look at her with concern.

“Mom? Are you okay?” He whispered worriedly.

The brunette turned to him and nodded with the same fake smile she directed to her sister earlier. “Of course, Darling. Weddings just get me teary eyed.” She said.

Henry grabbed her hand and rubbed his thumb over his mother’s palm. “Is it because of Robin Hood?” He asked cautiously.

She shook her head. “No, Dear. Not at all because of him.”

Henry nodded and squeezed his mother’s hand one last time before turning his attention back to his other mother’s wedding.

Regina watched in agony as the blonde was asked the same question. “Do you Emma Swan, take unto thee Killian Jones to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death **do** you part?”

Emma let out a visibly shaky breath and opened her mouth to answer the man, causing Regina’s heart to begin beating more rapidly than it ever had before. Just then, as Emma let out the First syllable of her answer. “I-“ She grabbed her head and screamed in pain as she collapsed to the floor.

**XXX**

Emma felt content as she watched the man she was marrying slide on the wedding band. She smiled down at it and then looked back up as she waited for Archie to ask her the same question. However, when he did, and the blonde opened her mouth to confirm that she did in fact, take him for the rest of her life; a blinding light shot behind her eyes and a loud ringing sensation blared painfully in her ears.

She screamed out in pain as vivid visions of an alternate version of her and Regina shared much different memories than they’d had before.

_A peaceful first conversation and glass of cider the night she’d returned Henry._

_Regina offering her a job as deputy and practically pleading for Emma to help her with Henry._

_Regina furious with Graham for flirting with Emma._

_Regina promoting Emma to sheriff without a second thought._

_Regina and Emma laughing together over coffee._

_Regina and Emma and Henry having family dinners._

_Regina, flushed and nervous, asking Emma out on a date._

_Emma accepting graciously._

_Regina and Emma talking in the car on the way to the date._

_Regina and Emma riding horses to a stream where they talked, and laughed, and played truth or dare._

_Regina’s lips against her own for the first of many times._

_Regina admitting that she was in love with Emma._

Emma smiled through the blinding and deafening pain as memories kept sweeping through her mind. The last thing she registered before she succumbed to the overwhelming fatigue; was seeing a worried Regina and a furious Hook leaning over her and saying things simultaneously that she couldn’t hear because of the ringing in her ears.

**XXX**

Regina panicked as she saw Emma collapse. “EMMA!” She screamed as her body, on autopilot, immediately ran to the Savior’s side. She knelt down and placed the blonde’s head on her lap. “Emma, darling, what’s wrong?!” She asked in terror as she felt the blonde’s trembling from pain, start shaking even harder.

The pathetic excuse of a man -Also known as the groom- kneeled down beside Regina and glared at the blonde. “Love! Just say you do so that you and I can get out of here.” He retorted.

Emma smiled fleetingly, and then everything in her body went still. Her eyes went shut, her head went slack, and her body stilled except for the faint movement of her chest as she continued to breathe.

Killian growled. “What did you do, Queen?!” He accused viciously. “Couldn’t accept the fact that Emma was about to get her happy ending, so you put her under some sort of sleeping curse?!”

Regina glared at the man, she already resented him for getting to be with Emma, but now her detestation of the man was forming into the purest form of hatred that there was. Not only was he utterly dismissive of his future wife’s loss of consciousness and apparent pain, but he was also trying to make Regina the problem. “Oh, please, Guyliner. Everyone knows Emma is my... my...” Regina resigned herself to the title that she had hoped someday to overcome, once and for all knowing it was always going to be. “-My best friend.” She said hoarsely. “She’s my best friend, and I’d never do anything to hurt her. Not after how close we’ve become.”

Hook scoffed. “Some best friend you are.”

Zelena and Snow White seemed to dislike where the man was going with this and walked over to interfere. “Hook, maybe you should take Emma to the changing rooms and lie her down, so she can rest. I’m sure it was just the wedding jitters getting to her. Nothing to go on about.” Snow said as she placed a gentle hand on Regina’s shoulder. “As soon as Emma wakes up, the wedding can continue as planned.” The pixie-haired teacher suggested.

Regina didn’t like the thought that the image of marrying Hook caused Emma to be sick enough to pass out, and the brunette’s stomach churned at the idea that Emma was marrying this man because she felt she was obligated to do so. “I’ll come with you.” She said hurriedly, not wanting Emma to wake up alone with her groom if she was indeed this uncomfortable around him. The pirate glared at her, but Zelena spoke up before he could refuse.

“Yes, Pirate. I think it’d be a promising idea for Regina to be there. Just to make sure she isn’t alone if anything happens that requires you to take an absence.” She remarked accusingly.

Hook seemed to want to argue with them, but seeing that he was remarkably outnumbered once Charming stood up by Snow and Regina, the pirate nodded his acquiescence and let Regina help him carry Emma to the dressing rooms.

After around thirty minutes Hook seemed extremely agitated. “I can’t believe she’d do this to me! This was the day she was supposed to once and for all agree to be with me, and then she goes and passes out!” He growled.

Regina glared at the man, feeling vehemence flow through her veins and ignite her heart. She’d had enough of Emma’s selfish and manipulative fiancée for a lifetime; she had no idea how she was going to have to cope with him being around for the rest of time. “SHUT UP you arrogant bastard!” She seethed. “Emma isn’t a prize; she’s a human being with feelings, hopes, dreams, and aspirations! She’s the most amazing human being that has ever, and will ever exist, and your lucky ass is the one she’s chosen to spend eternity with! God knows why. Even Neal would have been a better choice than your pitiful ass.”

The pirate turned around so expeditiously that Regina hoped it had broken his neck… (He hadn’t… such a pity) “Excuse me!?” He snarled.

Regina rolled her eyes at the man’s outlandish attempt at intimidating her. “You heard me, Guyliner. She made the supremely wrong choice of a spouse. You’re conniving, demanding, disloyal, unsupportive, selfish, arrogant, ignorant, chauvinistic, misogynistic, and untrustworthy. You have never given Emma anything without ulterior motives. It has never been about your love for her; it was always about winning her and getting into her pants. She deserves someone that can see how lucky they are to have her. Someone who puts her above all others. Someone who sees what she loves and wants and who she really is, and tries their best to give her everything she wants and loves without asking for anything but Emma’s happiness in return. You are not that person, Killian. You’ve always been selfish and misleading. You’ve never repented for your past actions and only apologized once you got caught. You’re a pathetic excuse for a man, and I just don’t understand why Emma picked you out of all people. There were other and better options.”

The man scowled at Regina. “Oh? Is that right, aye love? And whom might this magical person be, huh? Not Neal, no he’s dead? So, then who, Queen? You?”

Regina felt herself flush and averted her eyes as she stumbled for an answer. “I-uh... I-“

The man laughed wickedly. “Of course. It all makes sense now! You thought that your other half had done something horrible to her, so you wished to be in another realm without even knowing where she had sent Emma. You stare at her with doe eyes every time you think she isn’t looking, you’ve never liked me because you saw that she and I were going to be together. The only reason you think I’m not good enough is that I’m not you.”

Regina was about to blast the man into another dimension when Snow knocked on the door lightly and walked in. “How’s our bride doing?” She asked as she sent a worried smile in the direction of her sleeping daughter.

“Still asleep, at the moment.” Hook said in irritation.

Snow nodded. “I guess we’ll just have to reschedule.” She said matter-of-factly.

Regina felt relieved that she wouldn’t have to stand there and watch the love of her life marry the grotesque pirate today… Maybe she could escape the cruel fate of watching it happen altogether and put herself under a sleeping curse and have Henry wake her up from it after a few years? She sighed and shook her head… _What a selfish thing to think, Regina. Knock it off and get your act together._

Hook seemed less than pleased that his future mother-in-law suggested postponing. “Why can’t the Queen wake her up? Isn’t her magic strong enough to do that?”

Regina gnashed her teeth together as she spoke. “I can’t just wake her up; it could do considerable damage to her brain. It hasn’t even been an hour yet, just give her time!”

Hook grumbled incoherently under his breath and shook his head before speaking up. “Just bring her to our house when she’s awake, Aye?”

Regina balled her fist to fight the urge to magically choke the pirate as she nodded, signaling that she heard him. How he could abandon his unconscious fiancée was beyond her comprehension, but it seemed to bother Snow just as much.

As soon as the man left the changing room, Regina sat at the foot of the chaise that Emma was lounging on and grabbed her hand. She was growing evermore concerned for the extraordinary woman before her. “Wake up, Emma…you’re scaring us all.” _Except for Hook, of course_. She added mentally.

Snow sat down on the opposite side of the chaise and rubbed Emma’s hair. The princess looked at her former step-mother and frowned. “It’s going to really upset her when she realizes that she passed out in the middle of her own wedding.”

Regina laughed humorlessly. “Is that really all you people are concerned about? That the wedding hasn’t been successful? Your daughter is _unconscious_ because she couldn’t handle marrying a man that you forced upon her and made her feel obligated to love, but your concern lies upon the fact that the wedding didn’t go as planned?”

Snow looked hurt. “No! I’ve already requested Dr. Whale’s assistance; he is supposed to be here any minute. Of course, I’m worried about my daughter! How could you ever think otherwise?”

Regina felt guilt crawl into her chest, and she sighed. “I’m sorry, I’m just really worried about her; and the idiot pirate has gotten on my very last nerve.”

Snow offered Regina a half-smile before saying something that completely caught the Queen off guard. “I know today must’ve been excruciating for you. I can’t even imagine how hard it must be to watch her marry him.”

Regina did a double take before realizing that Snow wasn’t referring to Robin’s death. She saw the knowing look in the pixie haired woman’s eyes and felt utterly exposed. “You knew?”

Snow nodded and gave her a sympathetic look. “You really have changed Regina. It was very big of you to put her happiness above your own. You were going to sit silently through the entire ceremony with a while it destroyed you; just so that she could get her happy ending. I’m not even sure that I could’ve done that.”

Regina swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. “I’m not sure I could do this again. He deserves her even less than I do. I don’t think that I will be coming to the next wedding. I’ll pretend that I’m sick or something.”

Snow nodded and offered her an understanding look before Emma groaned and her eyes flitted open.

At knowing Emma was in good hands with her mother. Regina wiped away a stray tear and said, “I’m glad that you’re okay, Miss Swan.” Before she poofed herself to her mansion before she ruined her cover and showed Emma just how affected she really was. Once she reached the mansion, she took off her high heels and got out her bourbon.

Just before she took a sip, her phone buzzed.

She looked at it and saw a message from Henry.

 **Henry:** _Ma is at home and relaxed. She’s asking for you._

Regina furrowed her brow as her hope blossomed for a moment, but then pushed it back down. _She just wants to thank me for helping. She’s not mine. Not anymore._

 **Regina:** _Tell her that she has nothing to thank me for. I’m just glad that she is alright._

 **Henry:** _She still seems off, Mom. I’m really worried._

That sent a spike of fear into Regina’s heart, but she once again pushed it down. Emma was fine; she just had a migraine.

 **Regina:** _What did Dr. Whale say?_

 **Henry:** _That she had no signs of anything wrong. No migraine. Everything was normal. It was like magic knocked her out._

 **Regina:** _It was just her nerves, Henry. Everything will be okay. Your mother is a survivor._

She set her phone down on the counter and took a long sip of bourbon, enjoy the burning sensation as it slid past her tonsils and down her throat.

**XXX**

Three hours land seven glasses later, she was considerably inebriated when her phone buzzed once more.

She sighed and looked at her screen. It was blurry and illegible, which caused her to sigh in annoyance before magicking herself sober once more -she didn’t want to ignore Henry just because her heart couldn’t handle the pain of knowing that Emma never had and never would feel the same about her.

She unlocked her phone and opened her messages only to almost drop the device when she saw who the text was from.

**Emma: 1 Unread Message**

The raven-haired queen immediately opened the message and read it; which was a mistake because once she did.

 **Emma:** _You’re coming to my wedding, Regina._

Regina whimpered at the thought of going through everything again and tried her hardest to avoid the subject.

 **Regina:** _Glad to see that you’re feeling better Miss Swan._

 **Emma:** _Don’t ‘Miss Swan’ me, Gina. We’ve been through too much for that._

Regina smiled. This was the real Emma. She missed talking to her like this.

 **Regina:** _I apologize, Emma._

 **Emma:** _You should. Now like I said, you’re coming to my wedding. It wouldn’t be one without you._

Regina furrowed her brow. “I’m not even a bridesmaid. Why the hell is my presence so vital to her all of a sudden?” She asked aloud.

“Because you’re going to be the other bride.” A voice said from behind, startling Regina in the process.

Regina knew that voice. Hell, she _loved_ that voice. She turned around, hope growing effervescent inside her. She dropped her phone when she saw that it was genuinely Emma Swan behind her. “ _Emma!”_ She whispered excitedly, hope pouring through each syllable.

Emma smiled warmly. “Regina.” She said vibrantly.

“You’re better!”

Emma nodded. “It took a few hours, but yeah. I’m better.”

Regina smiled and nodded again, trying to bury the unwarranted hope. Emma’s statement was clearly just a joke; why on Earth would she all of a sudden want marry Regina now? She was with Hook. “So, you’ve set a date for the wedding to resume?” She asked through a tightened throat as dread tried to suffocate her.

Emma shook her head. “No, not yet.”

Regina nodded. “Of course, it’s only been a few hours.”

Emma inched closer, and with every step the blonde took, Regina’s heart palpitated, and her mind swirled with millions of different emotions. “Emma, what are you doing?” She croaked out, practically pleading for the blonde to stop playing with her.

Realization swiped over Emma’s face. “Oh, shit! Regina, you don’t know, do you?” She asked.

Regina corrugated her brows. “I don’t know, what?”

Emma shook her head. “Nothing…I-it was just… it must’ve been a dream or something.” She said sadly.

Regina’s heart broke, she had caused that frown, and all she wanted to do was wipe it away. “Was it a bad dream?” She asked.

Emma’s bottom lip quivered, and she shook her head. “I have to go.”

Before Regina could stop the blonde, she disappeared in a cloud of white smoke.

“What the hell!?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **See? Of course, Blue didn't hurt Regina! :) ******


	21. Chapter 21

Emma reappeared at the docks and sat on the bench where she and Regina had, had many serious talks in the past. As soon as she landed on the bench, the tears dripped from her eyes, and she let out strangled sobs.

The memories were fake, clearly… because Regina hadn’t gotten them, but these feelings, these new raw and untamed feelings of love, and longing… they were real now, whether the memories that caused them were real or not.

She sat there, with her eyes focused on the ocean and the rippling waves. She rose her tear-filled eyes to the sky, where the sun was setting oblivion ablaze with colors; fiery orange, searing red, and hot yellow, and yet the outer edges of the blazing sky had begun to cool with the indigo of night. She heard the birds sing their songs, she smelled the scent of the saltwater, she felt the caress of the chilly night breeze, and she still couldn’t feel at peace.

Every time she came to that spot, she was instantly calmed, but this time it was different, this time she was confused; confused, angry, and heartbroken.

She was confused because she didn’t understand why those vivid and imaginary ‘memories’ were now running through her brain. She was angry because she had been perfectly fine until they swept through her mind, clouded her heart, and made her fall in love with the woman who she had up until this point only seen as a friend. She was heartbroken because even though these feelings were random and new, they were also raw, intense, and real; yet, entirely unreciprocated.

All in all, Emma Swan was wholeheartedly devastated, so even as she sat there and watched the beautiful scenery, her heart ached and longed for a woman she hadn’t loved until three hours ago; a woman that she could never have.

She sat there on that now-lonely bench and thought back at all the times she and Regina had saved each other. Remembering how their friendship sprouted, and then slowly blossomed into something so fruitful that she and Regina both were shocked because they had never dared imagine something so genuine forming between them.

Each genuine memory only strengthened the love for the older woman that the fictitious memories that had sprouted during her wedding had caused. She frowned as she questioned why she had never seen Regina this way until now, and then realized it was because Regina had never given any indication that there could ever be something between them. She had hated Emma’s guts for the first year and a half. Then after saving Henry (twice), they had formed a partnership that eased into an uneasy friendship that was obliterated when Emma and Hook had brought back ‘Marian.' Then they eased back into their friendship, and it grew stronger only from Emma to ruin it by turning herself into the Dark One to save Regina… But as soon as Emma returned human once again, their friendship hit new heights, and they were closer than ever. Through all of that, Regina had never once shown any sign whatsoever that she was interested in a romantic relationship with her, so of course, she hadn’t thought of Regina that way.

Of course, she had always thought Regina was a gorgeous woman that would potentially be good in bed. And during the Neverland fiasco, she had realized that Regina was a fantastic friend, and the savior thought that she wouldn’t be _reluctant_ to pursue more than friendship with Regina, but as soon as they returned from Neverland everything went back to normal between them. So, Emma conceded to her mother’s requests and began courting Hook.

 _Hook_ ; her supposed happy ending. The man she was deemed to marry. The man she recently passed out in the middle of marrying. The blonde sighed and shook her head as she stared at the ring she had taken off and offered back to the pirate, only for him to refuse to accept it back and had told her -and she quoted- “Love, get your head out of the toilet. You will realize you still love me once this headache of yours, clears. We’re true loves.”

Emma scoffed at that. True Loves? How? Each time they kissed nothing happened. She felt something in her stomach, but it wasn’t an excited flutter or butterflies… more like acid. She cared for the pirate, sure. Even adored him at times, and she knew she could live contentedly (not happily) as his wife.

Then she looked back to all the times she thought Regina was going to die. She remembered the way her heart burned in her chest, the way the bile had come up her esophagus and burned her throat, making her voice sore and raspy. She remembered being hellbent on doing anything she could to save the woman that raised her son, never understanding why she truly wanted to save the mayor’s life until that point. She had always thought it was for Henry, but now she realized the truth; she loved Regina… not necessarily romantic love at that point, but it was always on the verge of being intimate. She could have very easily and very quickly fallen in love with the mayor, and now that she had she wasn’t sure how or why.

Then she remembered all the times that Hook had died, all the times she cried tears of… shock? She cried because she felt like she’d never find anyone who could want her again. Not Neal, he had died, not Regina, she is and always would be straight… so then who? There was only Hook, so she saved the man time and again so that she didn’t have to worry about being alone forever. There were no feelings of dread for his death, there were no feelings of fear or heartache at the thought of losing him. Just the anxiety, anguish, and fear of living out eternity alone and unloved.

She shook her head in disappointment; how could she have never realized the truth about her feelings? Not that it would have mattered if she had, Regina still wasn’t over Robin Hood’s death… A man that had never deserved her to begin with.

Yet, who was she to say who Regina could and couldn’t love? The Queen had done more than enough repentance to prove that she had changed. The woman had proven herself to be a hero, to be a devoted friend and mother, and for that, she most definitely deserved happiness and love; whoever she chose to give it to her was her own prerogative.

Knowing all these things still didn’t settle her stomach as she thought back to the trepidation in Regina’s eyes as Emma seductively walked towards her; practically confessing her love right there. That single rejection was the worst she had ever felt (and she had felt a _lot_ of them). Almost a hundred foster homes and not a single one of them wanted her. All throwing her back into the system to fend for herself. Yet, this rejection sent her spiraling into utter anguish more so than any other.

She sat there, her body -excluding her shaking fingers- was as still as a figure cut into stone while silent tears fell from her eyes. She had no strength to move. She bit down on her bottom lip trying not to let out her sobs of inner turmoil. Crying was not going to help. It wasn’t going to change anything.

One fact would continue to ring true until the end of time:

Regina didn’t want her.

So, as she heard her phone ring in the pocket of her red leather jacket, resounding Regina’s ringtone:

 _“First, let me clear up everything_  
_I'm only going to say this once_  
_So no, I didn't do the things that you all accused me of_  
_Before you start to talk to me and you start defending make sure those hands of yours are clean_  
_Cause you don't know who you are messing with, I am the one yes,_

_I am the Queen.”_

She started crying more and ignored the call. It continued like that for about a half hour before she heard Regina’s text tone start dinging repeatedly:

 _"Yas Queen! **Yasssss**_ Queen!"

Thirty Seconds later:

 _"Yas Queen! **Yasssss**_ Queen!"

And it continued relentlessly for another thirty minutes until she shut off her phone. She didn’t need to hear Regina’s snarky remarks. She’d had enough emotional torture for the day.

Then it struck her, everything happened as soon as she was about to get her happy ending, which the Black Fairy didn’t seem to want her to have. Maybe marrying Hook would somehow ruin her plans so she shot her false memories of the one person that the Black Fairy knew couldn’t have any romantic feelings for her… which would inadvertently ruin the wedding.

Emma bolted up and slid the ring back on her finger. She would marry Hook, claim her happy ending, and destroy the evil fairy’s plans whether Regina loved her now or not. Hopefully destroying the fairy would ruin these falsified feelings for Regina as well… until then, she’d keep her distance from the queen because being around her was an agonizing feat that she just couldn’t handle.

Regina had even said that she’d rather pretend to be sick than go to her wedding again anyway.

**XXX**

It had been a week since that fateful night, and Regina was in agonizing emotional turmoil. Emma hadn’t answered a single text or call from her. There’d been no contact in public or in private at all… it was almost as if Emma was a figment of Regina’s imagination.

She hadn’t been at the station, her parent’s home, or in any public setting whatsoever. According to Henry, the blonde was staying in the house that she now shared with the pirate and refused to leave, not even for Henry.

David had taken over the responsibilities as sheriff until further notice, and that was a never a good thing in Regina’s point of view because the man was incompetent as all get out when it came to organization.

But the main thing that bothered Regina more than anything is that she had caused Emma’s mental breakdown. She had caused the blonde’s depressive state. Regina had done something seemingly awful and she had no idea what it was. That was something that she’d been trying desperately to repair, but had been ignored diligently every step of the way.

Regina stared at her visible unanswered texts to the Savior.

 **Regina:** _Emma, I apologize if I have done something to upset you, whatever it is I am willing to fix. Please just tell me what it is._

 **Regina:** _Emma, Dear. Please talk to me. I hate that I caused you pain. I have no idea what I’ve done but want to make up for it however possible._

 **Regina:** _I really am getting tired of being ignored, Miss Swan. How is it acceptable to punish an unknowing perpetrator? This is juvenile, just tell me what I’ve done._

 **Regina:** _Emma, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. Your feelings are just as valid as any. Please just tell me what I’ve done so I can right my wrongs. I don’t want to have to live a life without you in it._

Regina read them all over for the fifth time as a tear trickled from her eye and down her cheek. She had screwed up massively, and she had no idea what she’d even done. All she knew was that she wanted her Savior to forgive her and she wanted her back permanently.

She checked the clock on her phone and saw that it was 1:58 pm. Two minutes before she’d once and for all lose the love of her life to an alcoholic pirate with only one hand and no brain. She swallowed back the tears of woe as she walked to her cupboard, poured herself a glass of cider and added a shot of whiskey to it for good measure.

The queen was just about to take a sip when a cloud of blue smoke appeared out of nowhere, and a worried looking Mother Superior emerged from behind the dissipating smoke. “Regina, she remembers!”

Regina creased her brows in utter confusion. “Excuse me?”

Blue rolled her eyes and neck all at once to show complete annoyance. “Emma! She remembers! When she passed out, she was getting her memories from the alternate timeline!”

The oxygen in Regina’s lungs dissipated and her world swirled around her while realization swept through her. That’s what Emma had meant, she _had_ chosen Regina over Killian, and now the blonde thought that Regina no longer wanted her. She gripped the counter as she feared to lose her balance. “How?” She croaked out.

“The curse meant what it said. She had to choose you over both men. It made sure that it was fair. Since you prevented Hook from appearing in the alternate timeline, it brought you back so that she could still choose between you and Hook.”

“What time is it?” She asked in a cracked voice. She had to fix this.

Blue furrowed her brow. “You fucked this up, didn’t you?”

Regina nodded slowly. “She won’t even return my calls. I should have known something was going on, Blue. I thought she was just goofing around… I acted so scared, and I broke her. Now she’s going to marry him, and I can’t do anything to stop it.”

Blue shook her head vehemently in denial. “No! You can still win her! It’s only 2:05 she’s just reached the alter! You just have to make her believe that the memories are real. You’ll have to explain everything”

Regina gulped nervously as she nodded her head and magicked on a nice dress before teleporting herself to the new venue for the wedding. She materialized in front of the two double doors, took a deep breath and barged through the doors.

**XXX**

Emma had been miserable for the last week; she knew the love she felt for Regina would disappear once whatever spell the Black Fairy cast was destroyed, but being away from the Mayor was enough to emotionally drain her. She was depressed, and even the thought of marrying Hook was enough to make her sick to her stomach.

The past week had been full of agony. Finding a new venue, cake, and dealing with the backlash from Killian for her ‘episode’ during their last wedding was enough to make her want to explode, but the worst part of all was being separated from Regina. She was so madly in love with her because of the fictitious that she was about to go insane.

She had thrown her phone into the sea and had refused to leave the house (preparing everything for the wedding online) in fear of running into or hearing from Regina. Henry came over every day practically begging her to tell him what was bothering her, but she couldn’t… he’d think she was disgusting for thinking of his other mother like that. They played video games and watched movies but he’d always end up going to Regina’s to sleep.

She felt entirely hopeless and couldn’t wait to marry Hook so that things would go away. All she wanted was for the pain she was feeling to stop, so as she stood in front of Killian, clad in her white dress she took a deep breath as she prepared to pick up where she left off and finally say ‘I do,’ but just as she was ready to do so, the was a huge bang and then she heard the voice she just recently fell in love with exclaim “Sorry, I’m late.”

**XXX**

“Sorry, I’m late,” Regina yelled as she interrupted the service boldly. She was a terrified wreck on the inside, but on the outside, she appeared to be a boss ass bitch.

“Regina?!” Emma asked with wide eyes from the pulpit.

The mayor smiled nervously at the bride, completely ignoring the evil glared she was receiving from practically everyone. “You dared me to pick up a crawdad.” She rushed out.

“What?” Emma asked with concerned eyes.

“Yes.” Regina nodded anxiously as her breath began to require extra effort. “We went horseback riding through the trails and we took a break at a stream. We sat and talked and laughed and then we played truth or dare. You opened up to me in a way that you never had before. You opened up to me, and fell in love with me and then a month later I screwed it all up. It took a long time, but we made amends, and then you finally took me back, but then everything got swept away and I landed right back in my worst nightmare.”

Emma had tears streaming from her eyes, and all Regina wanted to do was run up to her and wipe them away, but she couldn’t because her feet were frozen in place by fear of what was about to happen. Either Regina would finally get the chance to be with the love of her life, or she would have to watch the love of her life be swept away by a rapist in leather.

“But... you didn’t remember before. How did all this happen?” Emma asked as Hook wrapped his arm around his bride possessively.

Regina clenched her jaw at the way Killian was acting towards Emma, but she answered Emma’s questions. “I was watching you marry the pirate when I internally wished that I could have a second chance with you… to make things better, to win you heart and live happily ever after with you… Blue heard it and granted my wish sending me back to the exact day that you came to Storybrooke for the first time, with Henry in tow. I worked my ass off to win you back, but in doing so I messed a lot of things up in the timeline. I prevented Hook from coming to Storybrooke (which would’ve been a blessing) but that meant you couldn’t choose between your three loves, only two of them so the spell sent me right back here and gave you the memories, so that you could choose for yourself. Please, Emma. Choose me.” She begged tremulously.

Emma looked between Hook and Regina for a few moments, seemingly unsure of what to do, so the Raven-haired beauty spoke up again. This was her last opportunity to win Emma’s heart before the mayor lost everything, so the brunette was going to fight until the very end. “I want you every day, Emma. Even when you’re mad at me, even when I irritate you, even when I piss you off. I want you. You alone can make any situation better for me. No matter what it is I am stressing over or upset about, you always help me through it, and that alone is beautiful to me. Even though the little arguments we have over Henry’s schedule or punishments I feel safe and cared about with you. You motivate me, care for me, and make me feel like I am worthy to be happy, even when I know I’m not; and having someone that makes you happy, motivates you, inspires and believes in you can really take your life to a whole new level. You’ve done that for me, Emma. You’ve made my life complete in all the ways that I thought it never could be. So yes, I want you. I want you in the middle of the night. I want to be the reason you wake up with a smile on your face, just like you are for me. I want to be the reason you’re laughing constantly, and even when you have a sad day I want to be the one that makes you smile… even if it’s only for a minute. I want to be the one that gets to kiss you every day, I want to be encompassed by your arms. I want lazy days and Netflix and chill dates. I want to stay up all night talking with you. I want to be a team with you, Emma, Running this town side by side. I want to spend every Valentine’s day in a romantic hotel with you. I want to spend every Eater coloring eggs and doing mindless Easter traditions with you. I want to Spend Thanksgiving cooking extravagant meals with you and getting into food fights with the pie crust and flour. I want to spend Christmas with you and our family. I want you for all of time. Please, tell me that you want me too.” Regina finished as tears poured down her face and she awaited Emma’s verdict.

The entire audience was silent, and Emma stood there speechless, but Hook had other plans. “You’re delusional, Queen! _I’m_ her happy ending, and she’s going to marry _me!”_

Emma looked at him in disgust, causing a glimmer of hope to rise within Regina once more, but then Archie spoke. “Um. Is there going to be a wedding here today?”

Regina’s stomach churned as she waited for Emma’s answer and she almost passed out when she heard it. “Yes.” She said happily.

Regina felt the world wipe out from under her as she let out a whimper of pain. Her grief felt like an ocean engulfing her entirely simultaneously drowning her as the grief and pain expanded and overtook her with every exhaled breath. She turned to walk away, only to be stopped by a hand gently gripping her bicep. The mayor turned around ferociously, only to soften her features at the sight of Emma in a different wedding dress than before and a hopeful smile on her face. “I want you too, Regina. I said that there was going to be a wedding, I just wanted to change who was getting married… So, if you-“

“YES!” She screamed in delight, disbelief, and relief as she jumped into the blonde’s arms, wrapped her arms around her slender neck, and slammed their lips together. The blonde giggled into the kiss as she carried the brunette to the altar and continued to kiss her.

Emma magicked up a second marriage certificate, one with Emma and Regina’s names on it rather than Emma’s and Killian’s. She laid it on the pulpit and then gripped Regina’s hands in her own, causing butterflies and disbelief to swirl through Regina.

The brunette didn’t even hear much of what the former cricket had said before it was time for her to say her vows because all she could do was marvel at the fact that she was marrying Emma after all these years. She cleared her throat and did her best to speak from the heart. “Emma, I love you more than words could ever express. You’ve been by my side through everything, you’ve never given up on me when I’ve given you every reason to, and you have been the light of my life since the day I laid eyes on you. You’ve given me hope when I didn’t believe that it existed for people like me. You’ve given me a family when I didn’t think that anyone would ever admit to being related to me; and finally, you’ve given me friendship and love when I thought both were just a myth. I love you more than words could say and to be here, marrying you, it genuinely feels like a fairytale. Marrying you is the highest honor that could ever be bestowed upon me, and today I promise to you, my unconditional love, endless faith, utter devotion, and everlasting loyalty. With this ring…” She paused as she magicked up the most extravagant ring she could imagine and slid it onto the finger she had been marveling just a week prior. “I thee wed.”

Emma smiled down at the ring as tears stung her eyes. “Regina, you’ve always meant the world to me, and I never really realized just how much until a few memories made me realize that there was no way possible that I could live without you in my life. I questioned my sanity and even though I thought that I had been cursed at first but it turns out it was the complete opposite. I haven’t been cursed, I’ve been blessed because I finally realized where I belong. In your arms, and in your heart forever. You have always been there by my side at the worst of times, and at the best. I have never known anyone as strong, and brilliant as you. You have been the best friend, and confidante I have ever had, and I only hope that I am able to be even half as incredible as you. You’ve emboldened me and taught me how to trust again. You made me realize just how strong I genuinely am, and you’ve given me the honor of co-parenting our son with you. I know that we got off to a rocky start, but as soon as we got to our feet everything worked itself out. So today I swear to you that I’m going to love you even when times get tough. I promise you that I am going to be faithful, honest and loyal to you. And I vow to never give up on you. You are the one and only person that will ever own my heart, and you will always be the one I look to for comfort. With this ring…” Emma magicked up a ring that was just as brilliant as the one Regina had given her. “I thee wed.”

Archie wiped his tears with his handkerchief before finally saying the words that Regina had been dying to hear for the past six and a half years. “I now pronounce you Mrs. and Mrs. Swan-Mills. You may now kiss your bride.”

Without hesitation, they surged forward and kissed each other more passionately than they ever had before. When they pulled back, they held onto each other tightly and leaned their foreheads together with a smile.

Henry ran up to his mothers and hugged them tightly congratulating them and expressing how badly he had hoped this day would come. “I’m so happy for you, Moms.” He said as he kissed each one’s cheek. “I’m going to stay with Grandma and Gramps for a few days to let you guys celebrate!” He announced.

They both hugged their son one last time before they watched him leave with his grandparents.

Curiosity overcame Regina, and she asked a question she wasn’t sure if she was ready to be answered. “What happened to Hook?” She asked.

Emma chuckled and pulled Regina closer to her. “I teleported him to the docks.”

Regina let out a jubilant laugh. “What a romantic gesture. You’ve definitely shown your love for me.”

“I have a few other ideas on how to show my love for you.” Emma purred.

Regina groaned as her desire flooded between her legs. “Let’s get home.”

**XXX**

When they reached the front door to Regina’s (now it was _their_ ) mansion, Emma practically kicked the door down before pulling Regina through the threshold by her dress. In one sweeping motion, Emma slammed the door shut, locked it, and pushed Regina back against it, kissing her languidly. It was strong; they kissed each other with a purpose; to show just how much they loved each other. Their movements were quick, but their tongues knew exactly what to do every time they touched.

They began to undress each other: Regina unzipped the elegant and skin-tight dress on Emma and pulled it down over her shoulders while Emma did the same to Regina’s short ivory but equally as tight dress. Emma held Regina’s arms above her head while they continued making out.

“This time we’re going to do this right, baby.” Emma murmured against Regina’s lips, causing Regina’s heart to pick up and her arousal to pool at her core.

The mayor nodded. “Okay,” she croaked out, her voice thick with lust.

Emma brought her tongue to Regina’s lips but pulled back right when the brunette brought her head forward to kiss her. Emma was ready to tease.

Regina understood what was going on, and although she was immeasurably horny and dying with need, she played along. ”Why?”

“Because” Emma said as she traced her tongue along Regina’s jawline. “I want to do this first.” She said as she put her left hand in Regina’s black thong, keeping Regina’s hands pinned above her brunette hair with her right. “And you won’t be able to stop me.” Emma’s fingers knew exactly where to go, and Regina was a shaking mass of hormones as she stifled her moans of euphoria. Emma was an actual goddess… Emma was her _wife_. Just as she remembered that she whimpered in happiness.

As soon as Emma’s fingers hit her clit, Regina moaned. Emma had been 100% correct; there was no way in hell Regina could stop her if she wanted to. She was too shaky with need.

Emma pulled back; her eyes wide with lust. “Let’s get to the bed, baby.”

Regina shivered at how nonchalantly Emma directed that term to her, but she nodded and let Emma lift her up and carry her up the stairs.

Once they reached the bed, Emma placed Regina on the bed gently before stripping them both of their undergarments and climbed on top of Regina, lowering herself onto the woman so that taut stomach met taut stomach, and tight nipples met tight nipples. Then their forceful kissing resumed as Emma lowered a hand between them and began massaging Regina’s clit once more; this time with much more vigorously. Emma pulled back and stared down at her wife. “You’re absolutely stunning.”

Regina smiled and felt the blush creep up her olive colored neck. “So are you, my love.” She murmured as she brought her mouth up to suck on one of Emma’s bright pink areolas as she massaged the other one with a thumb and index finger.

Emma leaned her head back as she moaned out in ecstasy, and Regina wrapped her arms around Emma’s waist to keep the blonde close while she slowly moved her tongue to the other tight nipple.

“R-R’gina. Inside m-me.”

“Oh? Are you sure that’s what you want?” Regina teased.

Emma growled and answered her wife by gripping Regina’s wrist and guiding her hand to the blonde’s core. Regina smiled adoringly at the blonde as she inserted two fingers into her tight slit and pulling them in and out while curling them with each stroke; eliciting loud moans from the sheriff.

Regina reveled in the way Emma clenched around her fingers; signaling that she was close. Emma then pulled Regina’s hand away from her dripping apex and laid Regina down. “Let’s make each other come.” She crooned as turned around and laid with Regina’s head between her legs, and the blonde’s face in Regina’s core.

Soon they were both riding each other’s faces and moaning at the tastes. Within three minutes they both had come… **_hard_** and they were now cuddling on the bed. With Emma on her back, one arm under and Regina, and Regina on her side with her head on Emma’s shoulder and one arm around the blonde’s taut stomach. “I can’t believe you actually chose me,” Regina said breathlessly.

Emma chuckled. “In any universe, at any time, in any realm, you will **_always_** be the one I want.”

Regina smiled and looked up at her wife. “You do realize that you’ve made me the happiest woman in all of existence, don’t you? I thought for sure I had lost you. Why didn’t you just answer my calls?”

Emma looked down at her wife and smiled sadly. “I thought that the black fairy gave me the memories to prevent me from marrying Hook. I thought that you only saw me as a friend, so I threw my phone into the water to prevent me from making a fool of myself.”

“Oh, Emma. Being your friend was never enough for me. No matter how great an actress I am, I was always craving to grab you and pull you into my arms for a kiss that would take your breath away.”

Emma smiled. “Every kiss from you takes my breath away.”

Regina chuckled. “You really are a sap when you want to be, aren’t you?”

“Yes, yes I am.”

**Ten Years Later**

Regina sat at her office desk reading over the paperwork about a new shopping center that needed to be approved or denied by the following day when her office door opened. She looked up to see her wife standing there with a bag from the diner, and two bottles of root beer.

“I come bearing goodies, my love,” Emma said goofily.

Regina smirked and stood up from her desk. “I love you.” She murmured as she placed her kips against the sheriff’s.

Emma smiled into the kiss as she placed the food and drinks onto one of the chairs and picked Regina up, wrapping the brunette’s legs around her waist. “Ooo. If I had known all I’d have to do to get some appreciation was bring you a kale salad, then I’d do this every day.”

Regina pulled her face away just enough so she could look at her beautiful wife. “You know, whenever your mouth talks it ruins the mood.”

Emma smiled. “I think you’ll enjoy the next sentence that my mouth creates.”

Regina rolled her eyes. “Making a sexual innuendo won’t-“

“Henry and Jacinda are visiting next weekend.”

Regina felt happiness overwhelm her. “That’s amazing!”

Emma smiled, “I told you you’d enjoy it. Now, come on and let’s eat. I’m starving.”

Regina did as requested, and untangled herself from her wife. Her life was perfect. She had the love of her life, friends that loved her, a son who was married and expecting a child, and a family that was more loving than she had ever dreamed of. She had everything she had ever wished for, and because the curse that brought them to Storybrooke, in the beginning, prevented anyone from aging passed thirty-five, (except the ones that were older when they arrived) her happy ending would last for eternity.

~ The End.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I genuinely hope that you enjoyed this story! It's probably the hardest (and longest) one that I've ever written, and I've put a lot of effort into it. It's my pride and joy!**
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> **I love you all and am so extremely grateful for all of your support!**
> 
>  
> 
> **Please let me know what you thought.**
> 
>  
> 
> **-WhimsyNeptune**


End file.
